The last few Halo releases have featured microtransactions, and perhaps unsurprisingly Microsoft and developer 343 Industries are sticking with the system for the upcoming Halo Infinite.
A job vacancy posted on Microsoft's own recruitment site shows that over the summer the publisher has been looking for an Online Experience Design Director to create and implement a whole range of features designed to keep players online and playing together. Specifically, the ad lists the role's responsibilities as "progression in- and out-of-game; microtransactions and integration of our business plan throughout the game; and, finally, social and engagement features that encourage players to return again and again with their friends".
Few fans will have expected the game to avoid microtransactions altogether, as the days when multiplayer titles could ship with a bunch of maps and be left to look after themselves are long gone. Players expect constant new content, special in-game events and deeper progression systems - and all of that means development teams can't just release and forget.
The good news is that the job ad also insists that the successful applicant is able to put "the player first in all of their team's designs" and there's also no mention of loot boxes, that widely loathed mechanic which is rapidly being cracked down on my governments around the world for encouraging gambling.
Halo Infinite launches for Xbox One and PC in 2019.
