So no flood ?

Schylo Ren wrote:

I'm not entirely sure the recordings of the pug is solid proof the flood will be present, it would make more sense if the audio was used for some animal we have yet to see. In terms of story, we still have the created and Cortana to deal with, not to mention the banished playing some role. I believe there is not enough room for the flood to fit in without making the stroy feel bloated. most likely we could see them in a dlc

Totally agree. I've said as much in previous posts on the topic. Unless the Gravemind is revealed to be the one pulling Cortana's strings from the get-go, I don't see how 343 could add the Flood to the story without crowding the narrative.

Even if that were the case, a whole lot of exposition would be needed to bring people up to speed.

Schylo Ren wrote:

I'm not entirely sure the recordings of the pug is solid proof the flood will be present, it would make more sense if the audio was used for some animal we have yet to see. In terms of story, we still have the created and Cortana to deal with, not to mention the banished playing some role. I believe there is not enough room for the flood to fit in without making the stroy feel bloated. most likely we could see them in a dlc

In a perfect world, 343I would throw out most of the narrative of HALO 4 & 5 and start fresh for HALO INFINITE; making it a true spiritual reboot more in line with HALO: Combat Evolved & HALO 3. Those 2 games are without question, the best in the saga.

Some narrative threads from HALO 4 & 5 might sadly make an appearance; but maybe 343I will just start fresh and throw out the disappointing narratives and characters from HALO 4 & 5 to start the next 10 years with a new, exciting throwback to the HALO salad days; with a narrative, world and characters that are universally liked👍🏻

Schylo Ren wrote:

BlackChamber487 wrote:

Schylo Ren wrote:

I'm not entirely sure the recordings of the pug is solid proof the flood will be present, it would make more sense if the audio was used for some animal we have yet to see. In terms of story, we still have the created and Cortana to deal with, not to mention the banished playing some role. I believe there is not enough room for the flood to fit in without making the stroy feel bloated. most likely we could see them in a dlc

In a perfect world, 343I would throw out most of the narrative of HALO 4 & 5 and start fresh for HALO INFINITE; making it a true spiritual reboot more in line with HALO: Combat Evolved & HALO 3. Those 2 games are without question, the best in the saga.

Some narrative threads from HALO 4 & 5 might sadly make an appearance; but maybe 343I will just start fresh and throw out the disappointing narratives and characters from HALO 4 & 5 to start the next 10 years with a new, exciting throwback to the HALO salad days; with a narrative, world and characters that are universally liked👍🏻

then you may not like the game then, halo infinite is going to continue the threads from the past two games. Dropping those story threads entirely wont ever happen.

They could limit some of the narrative threads to only focus on wrapping up the Cortana thread and minor plot elements from HALO 4 & 5.

HALO 5 should be forgotten entirely.

i hope they are, shooting those ugly lil balloon bags was satisfying as all hell. like gross bubble-wrap.

I will be very sad if the flood does not appear. I want to start screaming like a two year old as a spooky flood thing jumps out of a bush!

Infinite is a reboot.

It's story has to act as an introduction for newcomers, a non-confusing welcome back for lost fans, and an interesting story diversion for those who have played Halo 4 and 5.

Obviously we know it's going to be about the Banished and zeta-halo.

But I don't see any reason why the flood can't take on part of that story. They are integral to the lore of the Haloes themselves - and as a reboot the Infinite story is sure to step back over such key points. They also serve as a (vital) refreshing mix up to the combat. And let's face it... if the Humans and Covenant (Banished) are fighting over the control of a Halo - the flood are going to get released (it's almost a horror trope of it's own).

There will be plenty of time to touch on Cortana - probably while discussing / dealing with the various human and Covenant AI's. They don't have to do a lot... just some backstory to get everyone up to speed... and then a visit from Cortana at some stage. She could just swoop in... help or hinder John... and leave with an ominous message... and hey presto, you are ready to move on with those narrative arcs in the next Campaign installments.

Schylo Ren wrote:

Darwi wrote:

Infinite is a reboot.

It's story has to act as an introduction for newcomers, a non-confusing welcome back for lost fans, and an interesting story diversion for those who have played Halo 4 and 5.

Obviously we know it's going to be about the Banished and zeta-halo.

But I don't see any reason why the flood can't take on part of that story. They are integral to the lore of the Haloes themselves - and as a reboot the Infinite story is sure to step back over such key points. They also serve as a (vital) refreshing mix up to the combat. And let's face it... if the Humans and Covenant (Banished) are fighting over the control of a Halo - the flood are going to get released (it's almost a horror trope of it's own).

There will be plenty of time to touch on Cortana - probably while discussing / dealing with the various human and Covenant AI's. They don't have to do a lot... just some backstory to get everyone up to speed... and then a visit from Cortana at some stage. She could just swoop in... help or hinder John... and leave with an ominous message... and hey presto, you are ready to move on with those narrative arcs in the next Campaign installments.

While it might pedal back in some areas there’s a thin line to tread, if we look at what we have in play we have Chief, Brohammer, Escharun, Cortana, and the Harbinger. each one possible making up their own faction. That’s 4 already if the flood are introduced that would be 5 in total, what worries me from the little bits we know of the story if the flood are also brought in it could potentially crowd the whole thing.

You would think (and hope) that they will keep it relatively simple.

For the newcomers at least.

Chief vs the Banished on a new Halo. It doesn't need to be much more complicated than that.

Clearly defined good guys vs clearly defined bad guys.

The Pilot replacing Cortana makes it easy to reheat and re-serve up a lot of the backstory (he can honestly ask the "who was that" type questions). And landing on a new ring, particularly the zeta-halo, makes it easy to retell the story of the rings... of which the flood is an integral component.

Overall I wouldn't be surprised if we essentially get an Episode VIII like retelling of Halo CE... just with the Banished instead on the Covenant per se. And the story notes will unfold more with the Chief answering the Pilot's questions (instead of Cortana / Chief).

Cortana will get 'introduced' early with the Chief having a bro-moment with the Pilot... and lots of little nods like the Chief feeling for his empty AI slot. Or maybe even with them finding an early version of Cortana. Late in the game Cortana will make an appearance to mix things up a bit... and do some evil forshadowing to stir up intrigue for the next game.

I dont think the flood will be in because they will probly get an m rating for gore and 343 is more kid friendly

Schylo Ren wrote:

Darwi wrote:

Infinite is a reboot.

It's story has to act as an introduction for newcomers, a non-confusing welcome back for lost fans, and an interesting story diversion for those who have played Halo 4 and 5.

Obviously we know it's going to be about the Banished and zeta-halo.

But I don't see any reason why the flood can't take on part of that story. They are integral to the lore of the Haloes themselves - and as a reboot the Infinite story is sure to step back over such key points. They also serve as a (vital) refreshing mix up to the combat. And let's face it... if the Humans and Covenant (Banished) are fighting over the control of a Halo - the flood are going to get released (it's almost a horror trope of it's own).

There will be plenty of time to touch on Cortana - probably while discussing / dealing with the various human and Covenant AI's. They don't have to do a lot... just some backstory to get everyone up to speed... and then a visit from Cortana at some stage. She could just swoop in... help or hinder John... and leave with an ominous message... and hey presto, you are ready to move on with those narrative arcs in the next Campaign installments.

While it might pedal back in some areas there’s a thin line to tread, if we look at what we have in play we have Chief, Brohammer, Escharun, Cortana, and the Harbinger. each one possible making up their own faction. That’s 4 already if the flood are introduced that would be 5 in total, what worries me from the little bits we know of the story if the flood are also brought in it could potentially crowd the whole thing.

The games more a soft reboot than a reboot, so it will still follow on from halo 5. If you lison to the recent interview with steve downes he talks about this and how some story tropes will carry on from halo 5. Mostly the issue of the soo called Cortana and how to deal with her. The banished are ofc in the game, being a soft reboot you still have the issue for new players not knowing who the banished are and why they are different from the Covenant. This is also set 4 years after halo 5 so there is going to be lots to catch up on for not just new fans but old, and i do wonder how there going to do this, if you keep up to date with the books it can help but yeh things need explaining for sure. Its not going to be as simple as reboot and forget everything that has come before.

I dont think the game will have an issue with including to many factions and feel bloated. They can have the banished who just act as a Covenant reskin and then just add the flood towards the end of the game for example and that's it. Establish the links to cortana at the start of end of the game is enough, she doesn't need to show up much at all yet. This story feels like it has only just started.
Anyway I think the big thing we can take away from everything we know so far is The banished love finding forerunner tech to stay ahead of the curve. Zeta halo is the most important / old and unknown halo ring out of them all. There is also a time line thats been deleted by the forerunners that took place on this ring which is mention in one of the most recent halo books. Im guessing that hidden time line is probably going to be the source of what the story will be about in Infinite.

We can hope the flood will be in, but I believe E3 is probably where we will receive some new information on Infinite’s campaign. As far as flood specifically, I would hope it would be a complete secret that no one would know until release.