Halo Infinite March Update Introduces Weapon Balance Adjustments and New Feature in Ranked

The highly anticipated March Update for Halo Infinite is set to release next week, and players are in for a treat. The update will bring a suite of weapon balance adjustments, addressing the community’s feedback and improving the core gameplay experience.

One of the highlights of the update is the tuning of the Bandit EVO and M392 Bandit. Since the Bandit EVO’s launch with Season 5, it has received positive feedback and performed well. However, based on early feedback and internal observations, the development team has identified a few areas of improvement.

• Reload Speed Enhancement for Bandit EVO: The community has voiced concerns about the slow and clunky feel of the Bandit EVO’s reload speed. In response to this feedback, the development team has made adjustments to enhance the overall reload speed for both the Bandit EVO and M392 Bandit. This change aims to improve the weapon’s handling and create a smoother gameplay experience.

• Spawn Logic Changes for Bandit EVO: Players have reported changes in the spawn logic of the Bandit EVO in Ranked Arena. Some players experienced spawning into advantageous or disadvantageous locations more frequently. To address this, the spawn behavior of the Bandit EVO has been aligned more closely with that of the Battle Rifle when it was the starting weapon. This change will enhance consistency and improve the overall spawn experience for players.

• Improved Audio Design for Bandit EVO: There have been concerns about the Bandit EVO’s First Person firing audio being overbearing, making it difficult for players to hear surroundings and other in-game sounds. In response, the development team has lowered the Bandit EVO’s fire volume, allowing players to have a better audio balance and immersion while using the weapon.

The Heatwave, a beloved weapon in Halo Infinite, has shown its prowess in mid-long range scenarios. However, feedback from the community suggests that it may have been slightly overperforming. To address this, the development team has made precise tweaks to maintain the weapon’s appeal while ensuring a balanced gameplay experience.

• Adjusted Aim Assist for Heatwave: The aim assist angle for the Heatwave has been decreased slightly from 5 to 4, offering players a slightly more challenging aiming experience to achieve optimal performance with the weapon.

• Refined Aim Assist Range and Falloff: The aim assist range has been decreased from 12 to 11, while the aim assist falloff range has been decreased from 7.5 to 6.5. These adjustments fine-tune the weapon to offer a fair and balanced experience for players across different ranges.

The Plasma Pistol is a vital weapon in both Ranked and social gameplay. Recent changes have increased the weapon’s intentionality and planning requirements, but players have predominantly utilized its single-shot functionality. In the upcoming update, the focus is on enhancing the weapon’s versatility while maintaining the usefulness of its charged shot.

• Optimized Rate of Fire for Single Shot: The rate of fire for the single shot trigger of the Plasma Pistol has been decreased from 10 to 6.75 rounds per second. This modification aims to strike a better balance between single shot accuracy and its strategic charged shot usage. Additionally, the overheated threshold has been lowered from 1 to 0.8, and the time for the trigger to reach a full charge has been reduced from 1.6 to 1.2 seconds.

The Stalker Rifle has proven to be a force to be reckoned with in the hands of highly skilled players. Its dominance in close and long-range encounters prompted community feedback aimed at ensuring the weapon’s effectiveness is appropriately balanced.

• Changes to Overheat and Venting Rate: The number of shots required to overheat the Stalker Rifle has been decreased, adding a new layer of challenge for players. Furthermore, the venting rate after overheating has been slightly slowed down, encouraging more strategic usage and allowing for less room for error.

With the introduction of the Bandit EVO as the starting weapon, feedback indicated that the VK78 Commando has struggled to find its place and role on the map. To address this, the development team has implemented smaller adjustments to enhance the weapon’s handling, ensuring it remains a viable choice in comparison to the Bandit EVO and Battle Rifle.

• Improved Weapon Handling: The Commando Rifle’s bloom will now reset faster, offering better handling and more consistent damage output. This change aims to maintain balance and ensure players have various viable weapon choices.

For the elite players in Ranked Arena with a CSR rating of 1800 and above, a new experiment is underway to address feedback regarding the lack of rewarding progression. The development team is introducing a feature called “Deterministic CSR Payouts” to enhance the experience for these top-tier players.

Currently, CSR point gains or losses are influenced by factors such as win or loss, personal performance, and comparisons to other ranked players. However, with Deterministic CSR Payouts, the only factor that matters will be whether the team wins or loses. Starting on March 19 in any Ranked playlist, players with CSR ratings of 1800 or above will receive a consistent 7 CSR points for a match win and lose 7 CSR points for a match loss.

The team acknowledges that this feature is an experiment, as it may have unintended consequences. The main concern is the possible inflation of CSR ratings, potentially reaching new levels not seen before in the game. Matchmaking and perception of balanced matchups may be affected as a consequence. Player feedback and the CSR distribution will be carefully monitored to determine the future viability and adjustments of the feature.

Stay tuned for the exciting March update dropping next week in Halo Infinite. As with any experiment, the development team is eager to receive feedback from the community. Good luck to all teams competing in the HCS Major Arlington hosted by OpTic Gaming, where players will have the opportunity to experience the upcoming balance updates firsthand. For those watching from home, a live showcase of these updates will be available onTwitch.tv/Halo and YouTube.com/@HCS.