Halo Infinite: 343 not quite where it "expected to be" in terms of broader public testing

Halo Infinite public flighting is currently up in the air, according to 343 Industries.

343 Industries studio head Chris Lee has said that due to the "unprecedented challenges of this year," the studio isn't sure when or if public flights may take place for Halo Infinite.

It's also quite possible one won't take place, as the team isn't currently where it "expected to be in terms of broader public flighting."

"When we first revealed Halo Infinite back in 2018, I spoke of our ambitions to kick off an early flighting program to bring the community along on our development journey," said Lee in a developer blog post. "The Halo Insider program and public flights have been instrumental in bringing the titles in Halo: The Master Chief Collection to PC, providing critical feedback and input to help shape the best possible experience.

"With Halo Infinite, we are also committed to building the game in partnership with our community but given the unprecedented challenges of this year, we’re not quite where we expected to be in terms of broader public flighting.

"While not the full program we had envisioned, we have been working very closely with the community on nearly every facet of the project. From the earliest planning where we focused on broad feedback around art style and story to actual hands-on playtesting and focus feedback with confidential groups of community representatives over the past two years, Halo Infinite is being created in partnership with the community.

"The team is still working and assessing options for broader hands-on opportunities before launch and we'll share an update when we can, but this process doesn’t stop with the launch. In fact, in many ways, feedback and community flighting will be even more important after launch as we partner together to continually evolve and update the game into the future."

We were given our first look at Halo Infinite's campaign yesterday, and if you missed it, just give the video above a watch.

The game is slated for release this holiday.