Forge has been part of Halo since Halo 3, but Halo Infinite’s version is by far the most powerful the series has ever shipped. It’s less a simple map editor at this point and closer to a full game-creation toolset, capable of producing everything from tournament-ready Arena remakes to entirely original game modes built with visual scripting. This guide covers what Forge actually lets you build, how its more advanced systems work, and how to find what the community has already made. For everything else the game covers, check out our complete Halo Infinite guide.
What Forge Actually Is in Halo Infinite
At its core, Forge is Halo Infinite’s in-game creation suite, accessible through the Community tab of the main menu. It gives players a blank or template-based canvas, along with an enormous library of pre-built objects, terrain pieces, weapons, vehicles, and lighting tools, to construct custom maps from scratch. Unlike older Forge iterations that were mostly about placing objects on an existing base map, Halo Infinite’s Forge includes true terrain sculpting and a far larger budget for objects, letting creators build far more ambitious spaces than previous games allowed.
Forge maps aren’t limited to remaking existing Halo Infinite locations either. Since its beta launch, the community has produced everything from faithful recreations of maps from earlier Halo titles to completely original arenas, obstacle courses, and race tracks that look nothing like a typical Halo battlefield.
What You Can Actually Build: Maps, Modes, and More
The most common use of Forge is building new multiplayer maps for standard modes like Slayer, Capture the Flag, or King of the Hill, but that’s only part of what the tool supports. Halo Infinite’s Forge also lets creators build entirely custom game modes with their own rules, win conditions, and objectives, which is why the community’s custom games library includes everything from traditional Halo variants to entirely new genres like tower defense, hide-and-seek, and narrative-driven missions.
Because Forge gives access to lighting, scripted triggers, and cinematic camera tools, some creators have also used it to produce short machinima-style films within the engine itself, continuing a tradition that dates back to the very earliest Halo modding communities. Whether your goal is a competitive 4v4 map or a wildly experimental party game, Forge’s toolset is flexible enough to support both.
The AI Toolkit and Visual Scripting
One of the features that sets Halo Infinite’s Forge apart from earlier versions is its AI Toolkit, which lets creators place AI-controlled units directly into their custom maps. This opens the door to cooperative or single-player experiences built entirely in Forge, something that wasn’t practical in previous Halo Forge modes.
Alongside the AI Toolkit, Forge includes a visual scripting system built around Nodes, which function like building blocks for custom logic. Using Nodes, creators can script behaviors such as teleporting players, opening radial menus, triggering AI reinforcements, updating on-screen objectives and HUD text, and creating interactive UI prompts that respond to player actions. This scripting layer is what allows the most ambitious Forge creations to function like small original games rather than simple map remixes, though it does come with a learning curve for anyone used to just placing objects.
Co-Forging: Building With a Team
Forge in Halo Infinite isn’t limited to solo work. Up to eight players can join an active co-forging session together, building on the same map in real time. This matters for anything beyond a small personal project, since large, detailed maps or complex scripted game modes are often faster and more consistent when a small team divides the work, with some members handling terrain and geometry while others focus on scripting and lighting.
Finding Community Maps Through the Custom Game Browser
Building a map is only half the equation; Halo Infinite also makes it straightforward to find and play what other creators have published. The Custom Game Browser, found under the Community tab, lists active custom game sessions that other players are currently hosting, letting you jump directly into a Forge-made map and mode combination without needing to know the creator personally.
All Forge-built maps and modes are supported inside the Custom Game Browser, and because custom games aren’t restricted to the mode-and-map pairings used in official matchmaking, you’ll find combinations there that simply don’t exist anywhere else in the game, from remade classic Halo maps in modern modes to entirely original game types. The system has proven popular with the community: Forge passed one million total player creations within roughly a year and a half of its beta release, giving the Custom Game Browser a deep and constantly refreshed library to pull from.
How to Get Started With Forge
If you’re new to Forge, start by opening an existing map in edit mode rather than a blank canvas, so you can see how professionally built spaces use scale, cover, and sightlines before attempting your own layout. Halo Infinite’s Forge also ships with tutorial content and object presets designed to shorten the learning curve for basic map geometry, which is worth working through before diving into scripting.
Once you’re comfortable placing objects and blocking out a rough layout, experiment with a small, contained scripting project, like a single teleporter or a simple objective trigger, before attempting a fully custom game mode. Nodes are powerful, but they’re also the part of Forge most likely to overwhelm a first-time creator if you try to learn everything at once.
Tips for New Forgers
Playtest early and often, ideally with friends rather than alone, since sightlines and pacing that feel fine solo often reveal problems the moment real players start moving through a space under pressure. Pay attention to object budgets and performance as your map grows; ambitious BTB-scale maps in particular can hit technical limits if not built carefully.
Finally, don’t underestimate how much you can learn by studying maps already circulating in the Custom Game Browser. Many popular community creators publish increasingly complex projects, and picking apart how a well-built scripted mode handles its logic is one of the fastest ways to level up your own Forge skills.
Forge’s Role in Halo Infinite’s Long-Term Content
Because Halo Infinite’s official map and mode releases have been spread out over multiple seasons since 2021, Forge has effectively become one of the game’s main sources of fresh content between updates. Community-built maps fill gaps in the official rotation, and some Forge creations have been polished and later adopted into official matchmaking playlists after proving popular with players. That path from a personal Forge project to a mode played by thousands of matchmaking players is part of what has kept dedicated Forgers active for years after launch.
This also means the skills involved in Forge extend beyond just placing objects. Understanding how Halo’s existing multiplayer maps balance sightlines, power weapon placement, and rotation paths translates directly into building a Forge map that plays well in real matches rather than one that only looks good sitting empty. Anyone serious about Forge benefits from studying official maps with the same attention they’d give a Forge-built one.
Sources
Halo Infinite Forge Overview (Halo Support), Halo Infinite Custom Game Browser Overview (Halo Support), Forge Features news post (Halo Waypoint), Halo Infinite: Forge Beta Passes 1 Million Creations (Xbox Wire).