Halo Infinite is here, and it’s designed to be the platform for all mainline Halo content for years to come. If that’s the case, we can expect to see some sort of story expansion or sequel take place entirely within the Halo Infinite framework. The game’s post-credits scene lends credence to this plan by giving us a glimpse of what may be Master Chief’s next ultra-headache. Read on to better understand the Halo Infinite post-credits scene. And if you’re here early, please note that this article contains massive spoilers. Consider yourself warned!

Halo Infinite post-credits scene explained

　　With her last breaths, Harbinger warns that your time is nearly up, and that The Endless will be your downfall, but Chief sees no evidence of that himself. Elsewhere though, after the credits, we come to a vault--its whereabouts unknown. A Banished’s hand holds a key and unlocks the vault, which opens to reveal a great number of Cylixes (genetic repositories), apparently with The Endless inside. We know definitively they’d been imprisoned by the Forerunners well before Chief, the pilot, and the Weapon arrived on Zeta Halo.

　　As the camera reveals what will maybe be a certifiable army of Endless in their memory card-like Cylixes, it’s also revealed that the Banished warrior who has unlocked the vault is none other than Atriox, the leader of the Banished who was once thought dead. It’s his apparent martyrdom that acts as the impassioned flame in the hearts of the Banished, especially Escharum, who takes up the mantle of leader in his absence. We don’t know whether what we see next were Atriox’s actions before his death or if he actually isn’t dead at all. Collectively, it’s one big head-scratcher.

　　Chief's finished this particular fight, but he's not exactly done yet.If you beat the game on Legendary difficulty, however, you get a bit more context in the form of voiceover during the same scene. You can hear a Forerunner speaking to something that sounds like an AI, and the latter expresses reservations about the former’s next actions. The Forerunner justifies whatever he’s planning to do, saying it’s the only way to contain The Endless threat. Both the Forerunner and the AI-like voice mention their work for The Criterion, another name perhaps even the most-read Halo fans don’t know yet, because they (or it) seem(s) to have been first mentioned in this scene.

　　Clearly, 343 doesn’t want everything to make sense just yet, so for now, we’re left wondering what Atriox is really doing in the vault. The Forerunner suggests to the apparent AI that Harbinger thinks Atriox is helping The Endless, when he actually seems to be hindering their freedom from their Forerunner-made prison. Meanwhile, who is The Criterion, and why does it feel as though they have just introduced a whole new level of interplanetary dominance?

　　It’s safe to say Master Chief will be called upon in time. Look for the saga to continue in future DLC or perhaps a fully-fledged sequel. After dealing with the likes of the Covenant, Flood, Forerunners, and Banished, it seems Master Chief’s not done getting acquainted with the powers that be.

　　Mark Delaney on Google+