All Current Halo Infinite Game Modes (Ranked)
How many game modes are there at the moment?
Are some game modes more fun than others?
In this article we rank them from least to most fun.
15. Team Snipers (Worst)
Snip snip.
Obviously this list is completely subjective, but this one’s just true. Team Snipers is a garbage mode for garbage people and you should feel bad for liking it. In all seriousness this mode combines the worst elements of Halo into a single package, sniper mains and slayer. Slayer isn’t all that bad on its own, just kind of boring and vanilla. But sniper mains can go straight to hell.
The mode consists of two game types across various small to medium size maps; Team Snipers in which every player just has a sniper rifle and infinite ammo, and Shotty Snipes which adds a Bulldog for each player. Shotty Snipes is really this mode's only saving grace, a genuine Halo classic.
While I do have a bone to pick with snipers in general and their spawn killing tendencies this mode really does stand out as lesser than the others Infinite has on tap. It’s extremely limited in its scope and only really enjoyable half the time if you land a Shotty Snipes match. Even then it's just slayer which gets pretty monotonous after a while. Good for one or two matches tops, then move on to more interesting playlists.
14. Team Slayer (Meh)
Slayer is as vanilla as Halo gets and the Team Slayer playlist is as standard as Slayer gets. There’s nothing wrong with a Slayer match here and there but for my money I’d much rather have them sprinkled throughout more interesting play modes as opposed to a playlist that is nothing but.
4 v 4, first team to 50 kills wins.
Team Slayer ranks pretty low in my books just because it is by far the simplest form of gameplay. Sometimes that’s what you want. If you want a straight forward Halo experience Team Slayer is that to a tee. Personally I prefer objective modes or at least Slayer variants (other than Snipers boo hiss).
13. Lone Wolves (It’s a Mood)
I work alone.
This one really is more a matter of taste. Lone Wolves is the designated FFA playlist in Halo Infinite and some players no doubt prefer to work alone as a rule. In my opinion Halo is like most things, infinitely better when played with friends. But maybe no one else could hop on and you’ve had all you can stomach of the inevitably terrible rando teammates the game assigns you. Lone Wolves can be a nice change of pace.
Lone Wolves is a nice mix of FFA game types across various small maps, Oddball, King of the Kill, Escalation and yes Slayer. Shotty Snipes is even thrown in there. These playlist tend to be my preference, I like to mix things up from game to game and I think that’s a pretty widely held sentiment. Obviously you’re on your own in all of these games and that can make for glorious chaos.
I’ve ranked Lone Wolves pretty low here not out of spite like some others I could mention but just because it’s not really my cup of tea. This could very easily rank high on someone else’s list. It certainly provides consistent opportunities for some pretty prolonged killing sprees, more so than really any other game type.
12. Ranked Arena (Occasionally Fun)
AKA Spicy Slayer. Ranked Arena is essentially just Quick Play with added stakes. It’s definitely harder than vanilla Team Slayer, whether that makes it more fun depends on your preferences.
Differences from regular Quick Play include more try hard players, no motion tracker, friendly fire enabled, and you start with just the Bandit. Explosive damage is the main thing to look out for here as most players are accustomed to just chucking grenades willy-nilly and that will result in killing teammates in ranked.
Ranked can be fun, but is also Halo at its most stressful. I highly recommend playing this with a team of friends because communication makes a world of difference. Also you’re less likely to get an aneurysm yelling into the void at that one rando teammate dragging your whole team down. Personally, Ranked ranks rather low for the stress/difficulty factor, but I have friends for whom Ranked is the best for those very same reasons.
11. Ranked Doubles (Fun with Friend)
Get a buddy.
Doubles means teams of two. 2 v 2 on a variety of small maps, some of which you won’t see outside of a doubles playlist. Ranked doubles at the moment consists entirely of Slayer.
Not a lot to say about doubles really, its 2 v 2 Slayer. I rank it higher than other similar game modes simply because it’s easier to secure a single team mate you know than get a group lined up. Pretty straightforward aside from that. Watch your teammates back, use headsets if possible, don’t get separated but also don’t cluster up enough to be taken out by a single grenade.
10. Team Doubles (More Fun with Friend)
Same idea minus the rank. Also Team Doubles has a variety of game modes beyond Slayer. It’s the combination of the two that puts Team Doubles head and shoulders above Ranked Doubles in my book.
In addition to adding game modes such as King of the Hill, CTF and Oddball into the mix, Team Doubles has a much larger selection of maps compared to Ranked Doubles. Just a better time all around in my humble opinion.
9. Halo 3 Refueled (Dew Colored Glasses)
Remember the days?
H3 Refueled is a relatively recent addition to the Halo Infinite pantheon. It’s a variety of 4 v 4 game types on a variety of classic Halo 3 maps and one Mt. Dew themed map. It’s decently fun on the classic maps and somewhat nauseating on the Mt. Dew green one.
Halo 3 Refueled consists of 2 teams of 4 playing Slayer, Oddball, Strongholds, CTF and King of the Hill on 7 largely faithful Halo 3 maps and one largely gross Mt. Dew flavored map. It’s a neat alternative to Quick Play when you want a shot of nostalgia.
8. Firefight and Firefight Heroic (Horde Mode)
Another recent addition to Halo Infinite, Firefight is its own thing. Essentially it’s King of the Hill, first to 5 against constant waves of AI controlled enemy Banished.
Overall it’s pretty easy especially if you’re utilizing vehicles effectively. Anyone with any campaign experience will have no trouble with this mode. Still it’s good for a morale boost after a losing streak and is decently fun to play with friends in between more traditional multiplayer matches. Absolutely doable with randos as well.
7. Infection (Conditionally Fun)
Infection is an interesting game type. Essentially it’s a zombies scenario. I believe the general idea was supposed to be Flood v. Human in previous Halos but in Infinite it seems to be rampant AI v. Humans. The majority of players start off as human, with a handful starting as infected. When a human dies they become infected. You win by either infecting everyone or surviving until the round ends.
I have a soft spot for Infection as a fan of the zombie genre in general. It’s a very fun idea.That said, I do recognize it’s inherent flaws a la imbalance. Human players have a massive advantage over the infected that can be extremely frustrating to deal with. They have guns, with admittedly limited ammo, while the infected are stuck with melee. They outnumber the infected by a lot at the start. Infected don’t have shields so headshots are instakills. They are faster and have a number of different tricks they can employ but still closing the distance is a massive hurdle in infection. Particularly if the enemy has managed to find a decent kill box, designed or otherwise.
This is what inevitably kills the infection game type. Human players find some incredibly defensible, or worse just incredibly hard to reach, spot and sit there until the clock runs out. Still it’s worth checking out Infinite’s take on infection if for no other reason than the fun map variants on tap. I do enjoy it generally despite its flaws, though typically one game is enough for a night.
6. Tactical Slayer (Hit or Miss)
Tactical Slayer, or SWAT, is 4 v 4 Slayer with no shields and no motion trackers. This mode is all about head shots.
You start each match with a precision weapon and your best bet is to aim for the head. Melees also work in a pinch, with no shields they are a one hit kill.
Not a lot to say about SWAT beyond that, it’s basically high stakes slayer. It can be a lot of fun or incredibly frustrating with very little middle ground.
5. Quick Play (The Gold Standard)
Quick Play is generally the go to playlist for most players. It’s 4 v 4 with a huge variety of modes. If you can’t decide what you want to play, Quick Play gets you into the action without having to think about it.
Quick Play offers Slayer, King of the Hill, Extraction, Oddball, Capture the Flag, One Flag, Land Grab, and Strongholds. By far the largest variety of game types. I imagine the bulk of players spend the bulk of their time here. Virtually guarantees you’ll neve play exactly the same match type on the same map back to back.
Versatility alone lands this playlist here in the top 5 and it’s well deserved.
4. Super Fiesta (Muy Divertido)
For just pure fun it doesn’t get better than Fiesta. That was until they came up with SUPER Fiesta! Random weapons, random equipment, and random grenades but now they’ve thrown in the special variants of the weapons that used to only be available in campaign mode as well.
The Super Fiesta playlist offers a variety of regular and Super Fiesta across a pretty wide selection of maps. All Slayer, you’ll start with random everything and just have to embrace the chaos. Additionally, on maps with vehicle spawns those are randomized too. It is outrageously fun and often hilariously unbalanced.
3. Big Team Battle (Epic)
It doesn’t get bigger than Big Team Battle. 12 v 12 on the biggest maps in the game.
Big Team Battle is as close to battle royale as Halo Infinite gets. Massive maps populated by up to 24 players at once (although there always seem to be one or two missing at any given time) this mode is gigantic. It consists of a number of game modes including Slayer, Capture the Flag, One Flag, Total Control and Stockpile, the last two of which are unique to this playlist.
Big Team Battle is a personal favorite, but is also loathed by a lot of people for some not unreasonable reasons. The scale can be overwhelming and frustrating to traverse without mobility equipment or a vehicle. Making this worse is the fact that dying is constant with how many things there are trying to kill you at which point you have to start over from base. It’s also hard to have an impact when you’re just one of twelve. Additionally you are inevitably stuck with a lot of rando teammates with team sizes so large, most of whom more than likely are terrible at the game. The enemy teams rarely seem to face the same problem. All true. Many BTB matches are frustrating from beginning to end.
But every now and then the pieces fall into place. You make an insane flag run across this huge expanse of map, or get a hold of a tank and just rack up the kills..The vehicles on these maps are unbelievably satisfying to just go hog wild in. The Scorpion tank might be the best vehicle ever designed and you’ll rarely see it outside of this playlist. Definitely a double edged sword but one I find myself returning to time and again.
2. Husky Raid (Glorious Chaos)
Another relatively recent addition to the Halo world, Husky Raid is an absolute gem. 4 v 4 CTF with Fiesta or Super Fiesta weapon sets.
That’s fun enough, but the maps are what make this playlist so special. Husky Raid is played on a number of different maps all of which are unique to the Husky Raid playlist. They are all essentially some variety of hallway. Very linear, designed to be a kill box for both teams. It is utter chaos every time. Also, fun random detail, Husky Raid allows you to use equipment while holding the flag. This means you can grappleshot yourself back to base in seconds and score before the enemy even knows you have the flag. So satisfying.
An unfortunate by-product of these linear map designs combined with access to insane arsenals is unparalleled potential for spawn killing. Every spawn point is clustered in and around a pretty small space on either end of each map and more often than not you can rack up a pretty decent killstreak just playing whack a mole with power weapons. One of the all time great generators of gamer rage. This mode can be immensely satisfying or immensely frustrating in equal measure.
1. Squad Battle (The GOAT)
Halo at it's best.
In my humble opinion it does not get better than Squad Battle. Truly the greatest playlist in not only Halo Infinite but any Halo game to date. 8 v 8 seems to be the perfect number when it comes to Halo.
Squad Battle has all the strengths of BTB while lessening some of its more odious elements. Simply reducing the team sizes by 4 makes a world of difference. Matches tend to feel a lot more even footed and you don’t have as much dead weight to drag around. The maps also generally feel more balanced with the notable exception of Kusini Bay but he’s a legacy, what are you gonna do?
