Summary
TheHalofranchise is renowned for its large range of multiplayer experiences, with two decades worth of releases creating a huge amount of online modes for players to enjoy. Despite this, recent installments to the franchise have been criticized for the lack of depth and variety in their online content, with there being a clear need for change.
Thankfully,Haloand 343 may not have to look any further than the franchise’s well-established Firefight mode to revitalize the IP’s online offerings. Firefight was once an iconic part of theHalomultiplayer experience, but has since faded into unfortunate obscurity. The mode shares a lot of similarities with the Zombies mode of theCall of Dutyfranchise, and Firefight should receive the same care that Zombies has received to reach the same level of success as theCoDmode.
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Halo’s Firefight and Emulating the Success of Call of Duty Zombies
Firefight was first introduced toHaloin 2009’sODST, adding a great new layer to the franchise’s multiplayer. Going on to appear to similar success inHalo Reach, Firefight sees teams of up to four players act as Spartans defending a location from waves of AI-controlled Covenant forces. Firefight captures the chaotic gameplay ofHalo’s co-op campaign experiences very well, with each wave of Covenant forces becoming increasingly difficult as a mission progresses.
Halo Reach’s Firefight had a lot in the way of customization, even boasting a Versus mode for Firefight that saw one team take control of Covenant Elites to hinder the Spartan defenders. It is clear that Firefight had a huge ceiling in terms of how it could be developed further for the franchise, but it sadly made little to no appearances followingReach. The mode was partially reimagined forHalo 5: Guardiansand evenHalo Wars 2but was never really given the love it needed to thrive in the way it did previously.
At its core, Firefight shares a lot of similarities withCall of DutyZombies, both traditionally featuring four-player PvE matches against waves of increasingly imposing enemies. The core difference between the two is the consistent attention and reworks that Zombies has received over the years, whereas Firefight has been left in the dust.Zombies has appeared numerous times withinCoD, being spearheaded by a number of studios and taking many different forms.
More recently,Call of DutyZombies has moved over to the Outbreak Zombies formula, applying the mode’s framework to larger-scale experiences with objectives that players need to complete to progress. While this has been somewhat divisive, it is proof that Activision is willing to adapt Zombies around the changing identity of the franchise to ensure it still holds prominence in newer releases. This is a complete deviation from the approach 343 has taken with Firefight, with the mode losing any form of support in recentHaloreleases.
A revival of Firefight would be a perfect way totake the heat off ofHalo Infinite’s content criticism, even with the title bolstering its game modes quite significantly in recent months. If Firefight is reintroduced with annual support and a greater variety of modes, it could easily rise to become a pillar of theHalofranchise going forward. This could even tie intoHalo Infinite’s in-game seasons, with new Firefight maps and modes periodically releasing and getting seasonal variants at times like Halloween.CoDZombies shows how a similar mode can be successful through passion and attention, andHalo’s Firefight should adopt a similar mentality going forward.
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