‘Halo 5’ Warzone Firefight Launches With Bonuses And Free Week-Long Trial


Developer 343 Industries flipped the switch Wednesday to make the Warzone Firefight update live for Halo 5 on the Xbox One. The update comes with the namesake new co-op multiplayer mode along with new multiplayer maps, a score attack mode for the campaign, plus new Forge items and a map to play with. Additionally, Microsoft is celebrating the content update release by making Halo 5 free to play to all Xbox LIVE Gold subscribers for a week.

The price of Halo 5 in the Xbox Store has been reduced to $30 for all Xbox LIVE Gold subscribers as part of the Warzone Firefight update promotion. Additionally, Xbox One owners can download a trial as part of the “Free Play Days” program. This will allow Xbox LIVE Gold subscribers to download and play the full release of Halo 5 for free through July 5.

The Warzone Firefight update comes with the eponymous co-op multiplayer mode that expands on the Firefight concept introduced with Halo 3: ODST and Halo: Reach. It also introduces the Grunt Goblin and the UNSC Wasp, a new boss and a new vehicle for all Warzone multiplayer modes.

Halo 5 is offering a big incentive to try out Warzone Firefight this week with Gold REQ Pack bonuses towards victories. Additionally, 343 Industries has added a Daily Login Reward REQ Pack and a Warzone Firefight Daily Win REQ Pack.

Here is the rundown on how to earn the Gold REQ Packs from Warzone Firefight victories.

  • 1st Warzone Firefight Victory: 1 Gold REQ Pack
  • 3rd Warzone Firefight Victory: 3 Gold REQ Packs
  • 10th Warzone Firefight Victory: 5 Gold REQ Packs
Halo 5 Molten (Xbox One)
[Image via 343 Industries]

Meanwhile, Arena multiplayer fans can now compete with one another on the new map, “Molten.” This map is set in a refinery on the minor colony Ruthersburg. There’s also a new map called “Attack on Sanctum” available for all Warzone modes.

The Score Attack option has also been added to the Halo 5 campaign. This allows players to compete with one another by scoring points and medals in both co-op and solo play to compare with their friends. The style in which Spartans take down Covenant and Prometheans does matter toward the score total.

Naturally, new REQ items are included with the update. The Cinder, Cyclops, and Fenrir Wolffriend armor sets are included along with the new UNSC Wasp VTOL ship. There are also new variants of Covenant vehicles that have a golden hue to them plus new variants of Covenant weapons.

Halo 5 Attack on Sanctum (Xbox One)
[Image via 343 Industries]

The patch notes include a long list of tweaks and bug fixes. Some of the most notable include reduced REQ energy cost for Incineration Cannons, Plasma Casters, and Gravity Hammers. The Warzone bosses have all received touch-ups to their color schemes and weapons to make them more distinctive from one another.

For those unfamiliar with Warzone Firefight, it is an eight-player co-op mode featuring five rounds that last five minutes each. Each round has an objective that must be completed before the end of the round. Failing to complete the objective will end the match while completing the objective will bring on the next round.

Each round ends with a 30-second intermission before the start of the next round. This gives players a chance to regroup, restock on ammo, and call in any REQs that may be ready to use in the upcoming round.

The enemies and objectives will get progressively more difficult as players progress through each round. Generally speaking, the third round is when players will need to start calling in power weapons and vehicles to help complete objectives.

Halo 5 Warzone Firefight (Xbox One)
[Image via 343 Industries]

The fifth and final round features two boss encounters. The first encounter is similar to the bosses from earlier rounds. The second encounter features a battle against a Mythic level boss with a huge health pool. He is usually accompanied by minions and Legendary-tier bosses. It will take the entire fireteam plus plenty of power weapons and vehicles to bring it down before the timer runs out.

As previously covered, the new Grunt Goblin is an all-new boss for players to encounter in all Warzone modes, including Firefight. This Covenant Grunt in a mech suit is equipped with a double-barrel Heavy Needler that can take out Spartans in a single shot. Players will want to target the cockpit and the mech suit’s backpack to disable and destroy the boss.

What do you think of the new Warzone Firefight update for Halo 5? Sound off in the comments below.

[Image via 343 Industries]

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