color selection system for Spartan armor with a new coating system that uses pre-designed skins for the game’s armor, weapons, and vehicles. According to the developer, the coating system is a “seven-layer shader” that allows colors, materials, and patterns to be added to seven channels, allowing for a greater variation of skins.
Many fans were concerned that the new coating system would just be another way for the developer to monetize the game, but 343 Industries Community Manager John "Unyshek" Junyszek recently confirmed that some of the game’s coatings may be earned through gameplay and as special rewards. Junyszek also revealed that the coating system would not allow players to customize the colors of the coatings, in some sort of hybrid between the old color selection system and the new coating system, as the colors and materials for the skins are built into them and cannot be customized.
As for the actual price of the armor coatings when the game finally comes out next year, YouTube gaming personality online promotions that the game is currently running in the midst of its release delay to 2021. Apart from advertising a contest for an “Xbox Series X Prize Pack,” the image mentions a code for unlocking the Monarch Armor Coating, one of the many armor customization options that are coming to Halo Infinite that have previously been revealed, which it says is valued at $5.
Halo Infinite isn’t the first game to sell in-game skins for real money, games like Riot's Valorant offer skin packs for its array of weapons for pretty hefty price tags, like the Ultra Edition Elderflame skin set that cost $90 or its many standard skin packs for $25. Although the skins are also available for purchase for in-game currency that can be earned through gameplay, the costs are astronomically high as well and those who don’t have the time to grind the in-game currency may have to resort to spending a pretty sizable amount of money for them.
It isn’t clear whether Halo Infinite’s coatings will actually cost $5 when the game releases next year, as the promotional image only mentions the skin’s value and not its actual selling price. It's possible that these special promotional coatings are valued at a higher price than 343 Industries will charge for the normal coatings it sells in the game. But it does give fans an estimate for how much the new coatings could potentially cost, although it seems safe to think that the cost of Halo Infinite’s coatings will vary depending on the actual design of the skin and where it is applied, whether to armor, a weapon, or vehicle.
Source: Sean W/Twitter
