Microsoft’s new console will still launch this holiday, but an early lead over Sony’s PlayStation 5 now seems impossible.
Delays are a fact of life in the video game industry — and they usually make for much better finished products. But the postponement of Halo Infinite couldn’t have come at a worse time for Microsoft. As the company gears up for another battle with Sony amid a year that has been a financial windfall for game makers, it’s had to temporarily holster its most powerful weapon — and in doing so has muted one of the loudest arguments for buying an Xbox Series X. Let’s be clear: The decision to delay the game was the right one, no matter how disappointing it might be to fans. The pandemic (and other challenges it didn’t detail) slowed things down. And developer 343 reportedly took the well-being of its team into account. And after the disappointing fan reception of Halo 5, Microsoft needs Infinite to be near perfect. Its hands, ultimately, were tied. But from a competitive standpoint, it’s going to result in a lot of scrambling. While Tuesday’s news was shocking to fans, Microsoft may have started dropping hints about this as early as May. Speaking as a guest on CNBC, Xbox chief Phil Spencer said he was confident about the Series X hitting its target, but was less certain about games. “Teams are doing a really good job of keeping our hardware on track. I’d say the bigger unknown is probably the game production — just being honest,” he said.
