The “Halo” franchise has been around since 2001 … and saying that is crazy to me.

“Halo” took the world by storm as Microsoft’s attempt at making a groundbreaking first-person sci-fi shooter. A successful attempt, as here we are later with a franchise that includes an impressive game library, a merchandise line, and now a successful TV show. You know what is even more impressive than that?

The newest iteration of “Halo” multiplayer is here – and it’s free to play.

“Halo Infinite” is a first-person shooter which puts you in the boots of Spartans, training against each other to prepare for battle against the alien covenant. Each match in “Infinite” puts you in battle, from four versus four all the way up to twelve versus twelve, across many maps littered with weapons, gadgets and vehicles.

The two main game modes of “Halo Infinite” are Arena and Big Team Battle. Both modes have smaller sub games within them. Arena mode puts the emphasis on small scale, boots on the ground game modes like Slayer, Free for All and more. Big Team Battle opens of the sandbox experience of Halo with combined arms gameplay, with tanks, Warthog jeeps, and more, on massive maps holding game modes like capture the flag and total control where a team must capture and hold certain points on the map. Big Team Battle shows off the best of what “Halo” is and always has been to its roots, as riding around on the maps in a Warthog with all your friends mounted up on the turret and passenger seat always feels like a nostalgic experience. It brings you back to the memories of riding around on the original map Blood Gulch in “Halo: Combat Evolved.”

With all the cool changes in “Halo Infinite,” from updated graphics to new maps, the customization of your Spartan has never been better, as the developers at 343 Industries have provided all players with a battle pass, containing both free and paid cosmetics. You can customize everything in “Halo Infinite,” from your armor to the colors of your weapons and the cosmetics on your vehicles. There is a lot of room for your personality to shine in every aspect of the customization. “Halo Infinite” is just wrapping up its first season of content; it’s an exciting time to get into the game, and enjoy what “Halo” has to offer.

Grab your battle rifle and plasma grenades, and download “Halo Infinite” for free from the Xbox and Steam stores. Move out Spartans!