The Halo Infinite co-op beta test that was expected to kick off today has been pushed back at the last minute. 343 Industries community director Brian Jarrard announced the pause on Twitter, saying that the studio ran into some problems it needs to address before the beta goes live, but still hopes to get the action started later this week.
"Flighting is fluid as the process entails discovering issues in initial rings and resolving them before expanding to a larger audience," Jarrard wrote. "A few issues were discovered in our current flight ring and the team is working to address.
"Apologies to folks who expected the flight today - we're eager to get this into your hands but we also want to ensure it's a positive and worthwhile flight experience. Still targeting this week but it's day by day as work continues. Ty for your patience and understanding."
"Flighting," for those not familiar with the term, is 343's in-house appellation for beta testing, and "rings" are Halo-speak for milestones that must be passed before more testers are allowed in. It's a bit unnecessarily confusing, maybe, but you have to admire the commitment to the bit.
Apologies to folks who expected the flight today - we're eager to get this into your hands but we also want to ensure it's a positive and worthwhile flight experience. Still targeting this week but it's day by day as work continues. Ty for your patience and understanding. (3/3)July 11, 2022
Jarrard also pointed out that the campaign co-op beta start date wasn't actually set in stone, but rather that the "target was the week of July 11"—and in fact it warned of possible delays when it announced the upcoming beta at the start of July.
Technically, then, it's not a delay, but even so it has to be disappointing for fans who expected to get in on the action today. 343 announced in August 2021 that the Halo Infinite campaign would be released separately from, and after, the initial multiplayer release in December 2021, and while it was expected to arrive just a few months later with the launch of season two, it's now well over seven months and counting. 343 Industries has also faced criticism recently for pausing work on a fix for ongoing desync problems because developers who would normally work on that issue are assigned to other things.
