Everyone remembers the glory days of playing Halo on the Xbox 360. Back in December of 2020, 343 Industries made it clear that the time was fast approaching for the system’s support to end in favor of more modern hardware. It was expected, given the dwindling play base and the current gaming landscape–but it was a painful promise regardless. Giving fans one year to bid their farewells, the servers for the Xbox 360-era of Halo games will be shutting down as of January 13, 2022. While the single-player campaigns will remain, what is Halo without your buddies?
Physical copies of Halo games on the Xbox 360 were discontinued back in 2018, with the console itself dating all the way to the primitive age of 2005. The games to be impacted by the server shutdown are Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Halo 4, Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Spartan Assault, and Halo Wars.
In response to why the shutdown needs to take place, 343 Industries released a statement. “To date, we’ve juggled future-facing work and priorities with continued upkeep of Halo’s Xbox 360 legacy services. Every cycle spent maintaining and supporting Xbox 360 legacy services requires significant time and resources which directly impacts the studio’s ability to support current and future projects like Halo: The Master Chief Collection and Halo Infinite. Owners of these titles will still be able to play these games indefinitely, however, certain online features and experiences, particularly online matchmaking, will be limited or disabled.”
Halo titles on the Xbox 360 may be saying farewell to multiplayer, but at least fans have Halo Infinite to look forward to. The newest title in the saga is scheduled to be released on December 8, 2021, for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. It will also be available on Xbox Game Pass on launch day, and multiplayer will be free-to-play even to those who do not purchase the base game.
