Halo Infinite Winter Update Balance Adjustments

Halo Infinite’s Winter Update is due next week.

In addition to the launch of key features that were missing from the game’s launch, the team at 343 Industries is also introducing balance adjustments.

The developers specify that they wanted “to go after weapon tuning updates that would address prevalent themes in community feedback.” While none of the announced changes are major, 343 promises they are still impactful.

Despite enjoying our time with Halo Infinite’s campaign and multiplayer, it felt like something was missing. Our main point of contention was that without co-op, Forge, and other features, Halo Infinite feels like an incomplete game.

One year later, the Winter Update will finally deliver those missing features with Network Co-Op and the beta for Forge Mode. As for the weapon balancing updates, the full list of patch notes is available below. They are also available on Halo Waypoint.

Halo Infinite Winter Update Balance Adjustment Notes

PLASMA PISTOL

Sandbox Team Dev Note: Many players reported that the Plasma Pistol was underperforming against Spartans, especially when using its overcharged shot. To help the overcharged shot track as expected at mid-to-close range, we’ve updated its values slightly in the Winter Update. We also noticed the base shot was not seeing much use, so we’ve increased the damage of the base shot to make it a more viable option for players.

Tuning details:

• Increased base shot damage from 20 to 28 
• Increased charge shot angular velocity from 20 to 35 degrees per second
• Increased charged shot guided angular velocity at rest from 50 to 70 degrees per second

PULSE CARBINE

Sandbox Team Dev Note: Even as players have gotten more proficient with the Pulse Carbine, it has not been as successful in short-to-mid range as we would like. To help with this, we’ve updated the tracking to help it out in shorter range. To help balance out its power though, we’ll be reducing its tracking at longer range. These changes should help player land shots more consistently in short to mid-range while slightly reducing the effectiveness at longer ranges.

Tuning details:

• Increased guided angular velocity at rest from 25 to 35 degrees per second
• Decreased angular velocity from 50 to 30 degrees per second
• Increased targeted leading fraction from 0.35 to 1
• Increased guided projectile error radius from 0.2 to 0.22 degrees

VK78 COMMANDO

Sandbox Team Dev Note: One of the most common pieces of feedback we’ve seen is that aiming with the VK78 Commando felt loose, especially at shorter range. To help increase its effectiveness up close, we’ve slightly increased the bullet magnetism and slightly reduced the high minimum error. We’ve seen this help players finish off targets at closer range during internal playtests, so we’re eager to see how this plays out in the wild.

Tuning details:

• Increased Headshot Prioritization Angle from 0 to 0.1 degrees 
• Increased Bullet Magnetism Angle from 1.25 to 1.3 degrees 
• Increased Aim Assist Angle from 5 to 6.25 degrees 
• Decreased minimum error angle max from 0.8 to 0.6 degrees 

BR75

Sandbox Team Dev Note: We want the BR75 to remain the versatile weapon we know and love, but also have noticed it has been performing a bit too well – making it not feel as rewarding as it should. In the Winter Update, we wanted to raise the skill ceiling on landing the final kill shot as well as reduce its effectiveness at range from the hip. These changes should help make kills with the BR75 feel even more rewarding.

Tuning details:

• Headshot Prioritization Angle reduced from 0.25 to 0.2 degrees 
• Bullet Magnetism Angle reduced from 2.4 to 2.2 degrees 
• Bullet Magnetism Range reduced from 20wus to 18wus 
• Bullet Magnetism Falloff Range reduced from 12wus to 10wus 

FRAG GRENADE

Sandbox Team Dev Note: The Frag Grenade has received feedback that it’s a bit too effective and that throwing one just before dying results in easier trades than intended. In order to help address these issues, we have increased the detonation time slightly. This will give players a little bit more time to react to a grenade that has landed near them. It will also reward players for better placed grenades. 

Tuning details:

• Increased detonation timer by 0.2 seconds

“SNAP SLIDE”

Sandbox Team Dev Note: Movement is always tricky to balance. We want to allow players to express their movement skill in matches, but we also don’t want that movement tech to completely break maps or create unpredictable gameplay flow. For example, “Curb sliding” and its current uses have been fun to watch and hasn’t been interrupting gameplay flow too much. On the other hand, “snap sliding” allows players to make jumps that could truly break the game flow, including having players jump from Top Mid to the bases on Aquarius. 

Tuning details:

• Fixed a physics bug that allowed “snap sliding”

DISRUPTOR

Sandbox Team Dev Note: The Disruptor has started to see more use as we’ve gotten further into Halo Infinite’s lifespan, but it still isn’t doing as well as we’d hoped. To help with this, we’re updating the ammo count to help players close out kills a little more easily. We’ve also spotted reports of the DoT effect being inconsistent and will be working to get an improvement out in a future update. 

Tuning details:

• Increased magazine ammo count from 10 to 12