Halo Infinite’s Helldivers 2 mode just got an October release date, and its gameplay trailer has me more hyped than ever

The long-awaited “Helljumpers” Helldivers 2 experience for Halo Infinite is just a few weeks away.

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Ever sinceHalo Infinitedeveloper 343 Industries implemented the ability to add PvE campaign enemies to maps in the game’s Forge mode mapmaking tool, its community has built many custom levels and modes that creatively make use of the feature. Among the most exciting of these is Helljumpers, an action-packed, Halo-flavored take on the popular co-op shooterHelldivers 2that took Windows PC and PS5 gamers by storm earlier this year. First announced byThe Forge Falcons— the skilled team of Forgers behind the mode — in late March, Helljumpers has been in development for over seven months now.

Featuring bespoke stratagem call-ins, randomized objectives, mid-match upgrade and progression systems, an extraction mechanic, a colossal map inspired by Halo 3: ODST’s gloomy nighttime cityscape, and more, Helljumpers is ambitious, to say the least (this overviewcovers its gameplay specifics in more detail). With 4,000+ script nodes and a maxed out Forge budget, The Forge Falcons have spared no effort in its quest to bring the bombastic fun of Helldivers 2 toHalofans on Xbox and PC — and now, we finally know when the mode will be in our hands.

During a panel The Forge Falcons held during the October 4-6 Halo World Championship 2024 esports event, it debuted the first-ever gameplay trailer for Helljumpers, along with its official release date: October 25. You can view the trailer below, or by clickingthis linkto its YouTube webpage.

The trailer shows a squad of four players dropping into Helljumpers' gloomy urban environment, recovering some sort of critical artifact and then infiltrating a relay tower to blow it to kingdom come before extracting on a Pelican dropship. Throughout the battle, waves of various types of Banished troops land en masse to impede the group, with the Spartans using their weapons alongside heavy artillery strikes and tools like defensive shields to fight their way to their exfil.

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Everything from the visual design of and details in the map itself to the pace of combat and the mode’s custom-coded stratagems look absolutely fantastic, and based on what we know of Helljumpers' structure, players can look forward to even more thrilling and chaotic encounters when its intensity ramps up after initial sets of objectives are completed. Overall, the Helldivers 2 inspiration really shines through in this teaser, and I can’t wait to experience the adrenaline rush of Arrowhead Game Studios' hit in Halo once the mode drops in a few weeks. It’ll feel even more like the Starship Troopers-esque shooter onceHalo Infinite gets third-person perspective support in November, which The Forge Falcons hasalready saidHelljumpers will work with.

Something important to note is that once Helljumpers is out, you’ll be able to drop in  without paying anything whatsoever since Halo Infinite’s multiplayer — including Forge mode and all the player-made creations that come from it — is completely free-to-play across both Xbox consoles and Windows PC (the campaign requires a purchase, though itisonXbox Game Pass). This is a boon for Xbox players in particular, as Helldivers 2 isn’t available on Microsoft’s consoles.

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The dream, of course, is official matchmaking support for Helljumpers, though I’m not sure whether that actually has a chance of happening or not. The Forge Falcons' CoD: Zombies-style Survive the Undead modewas briefly added to matchmaking earlier this yearand is actually scheduled to become a permanent part of Halo Infinite’s content suite on October 8, but its matches are generally pretty quick — only a few minutes long, in most cases. In contrast, a full playthrough of the Helljumpers experience has been said to be between 3-5hourslong, which may be far too lengthy for matchmaking consideration.

Still, there’s always a chance it could be tweaked and adapted for matchmaking support at some point, and even if it’s not, you’ll always have the option of dropping feet first into hell with a group of friends. Don’t forget aboutHalo Infinite’s Custom Game Browser, either, which I’m sure will be flooded with players looking to squad up come October 25.

Brendan Lowry is a Windows Central writer and Oakland University graduate with a burning passion for video games, of which he’s been an avid fan since childhood. He’s been writing for Team WC since the summer of 2017, and you’ll find him doing news, editorials, reviews, and general coverage on everything gaming, Xbox, and Windows PC. His favorite game of all time is probably NieR: Automata, though Elden Ring, Fallout: New Vegas, and Team Fortress 2 are in the running, too. When he’s not writing or gaming, there’s a good chance he’s either watching an interesting new movie or TV show or actually going outside for once.Follow him on X(Twitter).