Cortana's position in Microsoft's forthcoming exclusive has been disclosed by 343 Industries. We now get an idea of what Halo Infinite's campaign will look like after what feels like an eternity of waiting. In a digital showcase, developer 343 Industries reintroduced the first-person shooter's mode. Take a look at this:

Master Chief is still trying to figure out why Cortana, his longstanding AI partner, went rogue and sought to destroy humanity in Halo Infinite, which begins up after the events of Halo 5. He's looking for "The Weapon," a code-named AI that was reportedly created as a countermeasure to Cortana. The Banished, a splinter group of Chief's enemies-turned-allies, the Covenant, are standing in his path.

"How many firearms are you going to need?" One character inquires of Master Chief, to which he responds, "infinity."

Halo Infinite has had a shaky start. Last year, 343 Industries showed off a portion of the campaign's mid-game level. Fans mocked the muddled visuals, which were obviously not reflective of how Microsoft's hallmark franchise could appear on its marquee platform, despite the fact that it displayed a tonne of amazing stuff—including an open-ended terrain and a beautiful grappling hook. (A screenshot of an NPC alien taken out of context was particularly damning.) Craig is his name in the community.)

Halo Infinite was expected to be an open-world game, according to some. Today's webcast certainly revealed a vast area and some loosely structured first-person shooter gameplay (at one point, Chief attacks a Banished base as if he were in a Far Cry), but Microsoft hasn't confirmed this.

As initially reported by Bloomberg, 343 called in long-time Halo vet Joe Staten to assume the reins on Infinite's development shortly after the negative public reaction. The game's release date has been pushed back from 2020 to 2021.

343 Industries has been doing a series of "technical tests," or betas, for Infinite's multiplayer over the last few months. They've all been well-received.

Halo Infinite—or at least the majority of it—will be released on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on December 8, 2021. It will have a free-to-play multiplayer mode. Meanwhile, the campaign is a separate purchase that may be made like any other game or through Microsoft's Game Pass programme. It will not be released with a cooperative campaign or ray-tracing. Both of these things will happen in the future.