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The Halo universe has gone through many trials and tribulations since its debut in 2001. Not only in terms of its in-game lore, but also its ups and downs through various entries, even mainline ones after the initial trilogy. Its popularity waxes and wanes with the times, though there is always love for the Master Chief himself.
That's why so many fans keep coming back time and time again, even after being lapsed for extended periods. The original Halo's callwas so strong that it converted many people who weren't shooter fans, and some of those folks are looking for that experience again.
With that in mind, not everyone can decide what's best for Halo's future, even the current stewards of the franchise. Over in communities like Reddit, fans are torn over the direction of Halo 7.
In a spirited discussion on Reddit, one fan raised whether Halo 7 should continue the open-world campaign style from Infinite or return to the original level-based design, similar to many first-person shooters on the market (including the current Doom trilogy).
As you might expect, fans are mixed about what they want. One user writes: "I actually really liked the open world of infinite. The only gripe is how little was put into it." Another explains: "Love all the Halos and didn’t have a problem with Infinite’s open world like most, I actually enjoyed it but the next one should absolutely be LINEAR imo. That’s the format where Halo really shines."
Some want it to be more ambitious, but provide a third way out: "More like a chapter system like in FF7 [remake]. You could explore places and do side missions in that area, but once you continue the main mission, you can't go back. I also would love a dialog wheel to ask questions, but that's probably only the Mass Effect fan in me."
A few fans have expanded on that concept: "If Halo Studios wants to iterate on Infinite's campaign, I recommend having completely separate linear missions with a hub-world instead of an open world so that the actual story missions don't have to compromise onto an already-existing map (you can still have your HVTs, Marines, collectibles)."
Others are over the formula altogether: "I think we’ve seen the open world campaign style fail countless times already. Borderlands 4 is the newest one that comes to mind, but maybe that’s just my opinion." Reading these comments, it's easy to be reminded of why open-world games are so risky. If you don't fully flesh out that world, people won't necessarily respond well to it.
Whatever Halo 7 brings to the table, it's clear that the community is split on how the next mainline iteration will turn out. But it's also very clear that Halo Studios will need to bring it, as expectations are sky-high. Whatever route they go with, let's hope they also go the extra mile.
