Halo fans rejoice at the return of Mini Slayer

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Smollest Chief.

halo infinite season 3 key art
(Image credit: Microsoft)

Way back in the days of Halo 4, 343 Industries' first crack at the series post-Bungie, one of the developers had a mighty brainwave. What if Spartans fought, but they were all much, much smaller? Like, smaller than the guns they were carrying around small? Who knows which genius came up with the idea, but Halo 4 added the "Mini Slayer" game mode, and it turned out to be one of the few parts of Halo 4 that (for me anyway) captured the silliness that was always a part of Bungie's games.

Ten years on, Mini Slayer is making a comeback in Halo Infinite. It's now available in social matchmaking and, yep, you play as a shrunk-down Spartan who, with their oversized weapons, looks nothing short of comical. Adding to the effect is that the mini Spartans seem to get around on some sort of sci-fi rollerskates and, well, guess I'm re-installing Halo Infinite tonight. 

The mode was announced with a five second video which is one of the best things Halo Infinite's done.

Player reaction so far has been hugely positive because, y'know, dumb Halo is fantastic Halo.

And you can see sights like this:

One of the best things about Mini Slayer is the assassinations. Seeing one Spartan shank another with a knife that's the same length as their body… it can't be beaten.

Halo Infinite soldiers on, though 2022 felt like a bit of a horrible year for the game. But this year has seen the updates get a lot better, and 343's leaning into releasing classic modes like Invasion which always felt like a core part of the Halo package. Seeing Mini Slayer make a return is a welcome surprise. Now do prop hunt..

Rich Stanton
Rich Stanton
Senior Editor

Rich is a games journalist with 15 years' experience, beginning his career on Edge magazine before working for a wide range of outlets, including Ars Technica, Eurogamer, GamesRadar+, Gamespot, the Guardian, IGN, the New Statesman, Polygon, and Vice. He was the editor of Kotaku UK, the UK arm of Kotaku, for three years before joining PC Gamer. He is the author of a Brief History of Video Games, a full history of the medium, which the Midwest Book Review described as "[a] must-read for serious minded game historians and curious video game connoisseurs alike."