While Halo Infinite has been delayed to 2021, Halo fans are getting a treat this year when Halo: The Master Chief Collection gets an update to take advantage of the power of the Series X/S consoles.
Producer Matt Hohl has now shared some new insight on the updates, and they sound exciting. In an interview on Halo Waypoint, Hohl first reminded players that the update will land on November 17, so it won’t be there at launch, but fans won’t have to wait long.
In terms of the upgrades, there is a “raw performance improvement across the board,” Hohl said. If you have a supported display, you can play Halo: MCC at up to 120fps/4K on Series X and 1080p on Series S. “
This was a big engineering effort as each game within MCC has unique performance challenges. While there are similarities to the efforts on the PC versions of each game, the work to do this on Series X|S is not always the same and included some unique challenges,” Hohl said.
Whether or not you’re playing at 120fps, MCC will get various graphics enhancements. Players can expected increased draw distances and an “improved split-screen experience” for both campaign and multiplayer. Hohl also teased that the loading times are dramatically improved. “I can’t wait until everyone gets to experience these loading times,” Hohl said.
Hohl teased that the loading times are so zippy that the development team needed to factor this in to ensure a smooth matchmaking experience.
“One of the side-effects of the new consoles is that loading is so much faster now that we have to make sure it doesn’t disrupt matchmaking,” Hohl said.
Elsewhere, MCC on Series X/S will support FOV sliders. There will also be cross-generation gameplay, so people on Xbox One can play with those on Series X/S. However, it remains to be seen if players on the new consoles will have an advantage due to the better graphics, frame rate, and draw distances.
The Xbox Series X and Series S both launch on November 10, just two days before Sony’s PlayStation 5. The more powerful Series X retails for $500, while the smaller, less powerful Series S comes in at $300. If you’re still searching for a preorder, check out our Xbox Series X/S preorder guide for stock alerts at various retailers.
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