Halo Infinite's Forge mode and the creators who make it sing never cease to amaze, as work has now begun on a Helldivers 2-inspired game mode within 343 Industries' free-to-play FPS.

Helldivers 2 may have popularized the idea of space marines dropping from orbit in drop pods to do battle with alien threats, but before there were Helldivers, there were Halo's ODSTs, aka Helljumpers. That certainly makes the Helldivers 2 formula of dropping into a map, battling aliens, and completing objectives before extracting a perfect fit within the Halo universe, but to date there has only been one official ODST spin-off: 2009's Halo 3: ODST. A former Halo developer stated that a number of ODST games were pitched during his time working at 343, though none were ever greenlit.

Now, a group of around a dozen Forge creators under the banner of the Forge Falcons, have taken it upon themselves to give Halo fans an unofficial ODST spin-off inspired by Arrowhead Studio's immensely popular Helldivers 2. Appropriately titled Helljumpers, it uses Halo Infinite's robust custom game and map creator, Forge, along with the recently implemented ability to add AI enemies, to recreate the Helldivers 2 experience. The group has previously released a full-fledged zombies mode inspired by Call of Duty Zombies, as well as a battle royale mode, making them no stranger to big Forge projects.

From what the Forge Falcons have shown so far, Helljumpers looks to already be coming together nicely. The Forge Falcons recently showed off a brief teaser of the urban map the mode will take place on, noting that aspects of it will change over the course of development. A full gameplay trailer for Helljumpers is slated to release in May, with the mode itself aiming for a June release. As with all Forge creations, Helljumpers will be completely free to download and play.

"We're glad we can finally show this off to you all, it has been a lot of hard work over the last two months to really nail down the layout we want for this experience," The Forge Falcons stated on X.

In another post, the team welcomed feedback on its map reveal, and said it was looking forward to bringing "the Helldivers 2 experience to Halo Infinite." Far from a simple game mode, Helljumpers is aiming to be a complete game-within-a-game, featuring a story campaign that will take "approximately 2-3 hours" to complete if players focus on main objectives. The Forge Falcons say it will include "expertly crafted cinematic events" and even its own original soundtrack (albeit one that won't be heard in-game).

While fans hopefully won't have to wait long for Helljumpers to release, there is new content in Halo Infinite to keep players occupied. Halo Infinite officially launched its latest Operation, Banished Honor, on May 30. The update introduces Banished-themed cosmetics as well as a new cosmetic store where players can spend points earned through playing to unlock previously available items. The update also restores one iconic Halo weapon to its former glory via a balance change that fans have been asking about ever since the game's launch.

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