343 Industries has suggested that Halo: The Master Chief Collection microtransactions could be on the way sometime soon. In a recent development update, the studio said it was "internally exploring" the possibility of introducing purchasable in-game points to help new players who find the scope of the collection intimidating.
What form would Halo: The Master Chief Collection microtransactions take?
Although it's undergone several changes since launch, it's fair to say Halo Infinite players haven't particularly enjoyed the game's take on Battle Passes and microtransactions. Halo: The Master Chief Collection works a little differently. At present, you earn Season Points for leveling up in the game, and you can then use Season Points to unlock armor and cosmetics. Soon, Halo: The Master Chief Collection will ditch its Season system in favor of something it's calling "Series", at which point Season Points will become "Spartan Points". In a new 343 Industries blog post, the team says that as this shift happens, it's currently trialing a system whereby you can purchase Spartan Points with real money rather than simply earning them through play.
343 Industries says that since Master Chief Collection now includes more than a thousand individual customization items, players might find it intimidating to unlock all of this stuff simply through play if they're new. As a result, the devs are currently looking into allowing players to purchase Spartan Points so that they can buy individual pieces of gear they want or catch up to longstanding players. 343 is keen to stress that this would be an "optional, additive alternative", and that the team is "happy with the current system", so it's likely you'd still be able to earn Spartan Points organically through gameplay. The studio says this would simply be a way to help players "get ahead on (or skip) the grind".
That's not all that's coming to Master Chief Collection, though. After the game got official mod support for Halo 2 and Halo 3 back in October last year, the team is looking into expanding this mod support to more games in the collection. Other new features on the way include new customization features, campaign collectibles across every game in the collection and quality-of-life updates, as well as a Steam Workshop upload-download tool. Halo 2: Anniversary is also getting a set of Bioroid armor and extra post-match poses that should make your multiplayer experience a little more exciting.
What else is going on in the world of Halo?
Since Halo Infinite launched back in December last year, it's been a busy time for the shooter franchise, and not all of it has been particularly good. Earlier this month, 343 Industries got in trouble for an offensively-named palette on Halo Infinite's Juneteenth nameplate, one which the studio almost immediately renamed. The release of the Halo TV show has also met with a mixed reception, with fans debating over whether it fundamentally breaks the game's lore or expands its universe. Amid all this controversy, Halo Infinite continues to get regular updates, and 343 has also confirmed that network co-op tests for the game's campaign are on the way soon.
You can pick up Halo: The Master Chief Collection right now on PC and Xbox. It's available via the Microsoft Store or via Steam. You can also check out the Halo Infinite multiplayer mode, which is free-to-play on those platforms as well. We'll bring you more on Master Chief Collection, including whether or not 343 Industries decides to go ahead with implementing microtransactions, as soon as we get it.