‘Halo dropped the f*****g ball’: NICKMERCS says pride, ego prevented Halo Infinite from being the next big thing

Battle royale and FPS aficionado NICKMERCS had harsh words for 343 Industries earlier on stream, saying that the company’s pride and ego prevented Halo Infinite from being a premier title.

The latest installment in the beloved FPS franchise, Halo Infinite’s release was met with high praises. The title initially saw the return of old veterans and swaths of new players introduced to the series. Within the first month of release, Halo Infinite boasted nearly 150,000 concurrent average players on Steam alone, according to Steam Charts. Along with the proliferation of the game’s competitive scene, Halo Infinite seemed poised to find its way to the top.

Instead, Halo Infinite has seen a drastic decline in its player base. In only one month. the game’s average fell by over 85,000 active players, now standing at a lowly 4,000 concurrent players. Players and creators alike cited a severe lack of updates and responsiveness from 343 Industries. Creators urged the developers to implement contemporarily popular modes, such as a battle royale, to infuse the game with new life, but no such updates came.

In an on-stream rant, NICKMERCS vented his frustrations over the wasted potential of Halo Infinite. “The gaming community as a whole was ready for a new, fucking awesome game, and Halo dropped the fucking ball,” the FaZe co-owner said.

The Twitch streamer went on to express that 343 Industries should take sole blame for the sudden disappearance of Halo Infinite.

“Everyone at that fucking company should be ashamed of themselves,” he said. “343 is a joke, they’re fucking awful, they don’t give a shit about anybody that plays their game, old or new. Their fucking pride and ego got in the way of what could have been incredible timing.”

NICKMERCS said that despite the near-perfect setup he believed Halo Infinite to have, 343 Industries’ mismanagement of the game has led to its abysmal drop in average players. After TimTheTatman agreed with NICKMERCS’ sentiment, both lamented over the never released yet often teased Halo battle royale mode.

Though Halo Infinite may not recover to its former glory anytime soon, players such as NICKMERCS remember what could have been.