Halo 5's Next Free Update Detailed

The free DLC initiative for Halo 5: Guardians continues this month with an expansion called Hammer Storm. It features a new Arena map, new game modes (including Grifball), more weapons, additional Reqs, and further character customization options. Developer 343 previewed the expansion in a blog post.

The new modes are Halo fan-favorite Grifball and Assault. 343 has made some big changes to Grifball since the last time we saw it, and you can get a full rundown of the new version here in our previous coverage. Additionally, the update will allow you to create custom gametypes including Oddball and Ricochet, while Fiesta Slayer is also making a comeback.

Hammer Storm's new map is the epic-looking Torque. Only one piece of concept art has been released for it, and you can see it above. It looks like Torque is set on a space station.

Additionally, the update comes with new armor sets (Decimator and Marauder), as well as the Gravity Hammer melee weapon, among other new items. You can see some of the new Reqs in the image gallery below, but most are blurred out for now.

343 will showcase the first Torque gameplay and talk more about Hammer Storm overall during a video broadcast that is scheduled to take place on February 26.

Hammer Storm also includes bug fixes and general gameplay improvements for UI. In terms of bug fixes, the update should clear out problems related to player warping and de-sync "in some rare cases."

Additionally, 343 is expanding the color palette options for Spartan customization. When the update arrives, players will be able to choose not only primary and secondary armor colors, but also primary, secondary, and tertiary choices for Emblem colors. Here's a rundown of the changes, as written by 343:

• Expanded the color palette for armor and emblems from 32 to 60 colors
• Replaced the emblem harmonies with simple, primary, secondary and tertiary color options (see below)
• These new options have no restrictions – you can make any 2 of them the same color and get a completely different looking emblem shape
• These new colors carry over to Waypoint as well

Hammer Storm will become Halo 5's third free expansion following the game's launch in October. The others were Battle of Shadow and Light (November 2015), The Cartographer's Gift (December 2015), and Infinity's Armory (January 2016).

343 has pledged to support Halo 5 with further free updates through June.