By Sagar V. Mankar 
Halo fans may have gotten their hopes up for nothing.
According to the report from Shpeshal-Nick on XboxEra Podcast, the long-rumored battle royale mode for Halo Infinite has reportedly been canceled before even an official announcement.
This leaves players wondering – what happened to Infinite’s take on the popular last-man-standing format?
What Was Halo Infinite’s Battle Royale Mode?
The canceled mode was reportedly codenamed as “Project Tatanka.”
As per rumors, Tatanka was in development at Certain Affinity, the studio that co-developed parts of Halo Infinite alongside 343 Industries and Microsoft.
Whether it was envisioned as a standalone title, Infinite mode, or something in-between is unclear.
While unconfirmed, fans speculated Tatanka could bring Halo’s signature weapons and vehicles to an expansive, war-torn environment filled with equipment, locations, and lore from across the series.
A leak in 2023 suggested it featured squad-based play, PvEvP dynamics, and more.
But with cancellation, the gaming world may never see what Halo brought to the battle royale table.
Why Did Microsoft Pull the Plug?
Without an official explanation, the reason for Tatanka’s cancellation is uncertain.
Some possibilities include:
- Development issues – Building a polished AAA battle royale is challenging. If progress stalled, Microsoft may have cut losses.
- Market saturation – With Fortnite still dominant and new options like Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0, standing out may have seemed unlikely.
- Prioritizing Infinite – After a rocky launch, 343 is still working to improve Infinite. Ditching Tatanka could let them focus resources on the main game.
Of course, only Xbox insiders know Tatanka’s true fate.
But the rumors speak volumes about the difficulty of execution in gaming’s most crowded genre.
The last major release was Halo Infinite in December 2021.
What Now for Halo Battle Royale Hungry Fans?
While battle royale is off the menu, there’s still hope for fans seeking another massive Halo experience:
- Inheritor: Battle Royale – it is a fanmade mod for Halo Infinite that adds a cool battle royale mode.
- A Halo tabletop game launches September 2024
- The Halo TV series season 2 recently dropped a trailer
The franchise clearly understands trends like free-to-play and battle royale are hot right now.
However, continuing development struggles suggest Microsoft still can’t quite crack the code of delivering new Halo games efficiently.