Halo 4 PC test flight to start at the end of next week, says 343 Industries

What you need to know

• 343 Industries has announced that the first test flight for Halo 4 on PC is expected to begin towards the end of next week.
• The flight will include several campaign missions, Spartan Ops missions, and multiplayer maps for players to enjoy.
• Some new features for the Master Chief Collection as a whole, such as input-based matchmaking, are also being tested in the flight.
• Everyone who signs up for the Halo Insider Program will be invited to participate in this flight.

Halo developer 343 Industries has announced in a blog post that the first test flight for Halo 4, the final game that needs to be ported to the Master Chief Collection (MCC) on PC, is expected to begin towards the end of next week. The developer commented that final confirmation will come at some point. In terms of what you'll be able to play in the flight, 343 Industries is including five campaign missions, twelve Spartan Ops missions, and eleven multiplayer maps to enjoy.

In addition to the Halo 4 content, the developers are also testing some new features in the flight that will impact the MCC as a whole. These include input-based matchmaking, crossplay, server region selection, and more text chat options. Input-based matchmaking and crossplay will be particularly exciting to most fans, as these two features have been highly requested ever since 343 Industries began bringing MCC titles to PC.

The developer went on to state in the post that it needs as many people as possible to put Halo 4's systems "through the ringer" in this flight, so everyone who is signed up for the Halo Insider Program will be able to participate. It's free to sign up, and you get to help 343 Industries make Halo 4 as good as it can be on PC by playtesting it, so it's ultimately a win-win — especially since the wait for Halo Infinite got a bit longer due to its delay to 2021.

Halo 4 is expected to cost $10 once it comes out on PC based on the pricing of previous titles, but if you want to make sure you get all of the Halo MCC games for a better price than buying them all individually, we recommend picking up the full Master Chief Collection. It's $40 and gives you access to all six games in the MCC, saving you money in the long run.