Inspired by Rugby and introduced by Burnie Burns from Rooster-Teeth back in the days of Halo 3, Grifball will be making its way to Halo 5: Guardians towards the end of this month
“In Season Four of Red vs Blue, Sarge is taking pot-shots with a Sniper Rifle at Grif, whom he hates,” says Burns, recalling the origins of the game. “He’s having a great time and blurts out ‘This is the best game since Grifball!’ That was written about three years ago and we always wondered what kind of game Grifball would have been. That’s why the ball carrier turns orange – everyone in the game is constantly trying to hammer-smash Grif and even if he scores, he explodes. Either way, Sarge wins.”
Grifball icon
Since then, this variant of the game-type known as Oddball has become somewhat of a fan favorite. Originally, Grifball was played in Halo 3 using the Forge mode to customize the playing field. It became a legitimate game type in Halo: Reach and was even given its own icon. From that came Grifball Evolved, Blargball, Jetpack Grifball and Jump Pack Grifball, and Hand Egg. There was even an action figure, created by McFarlane toys, of a Grifball Spartan. And now Halo 5: Guardians will be welcoming back the fan-loved game, along with classic modes Assault and Fiesta.
“This collaboration helped us hammer out (pun intended) the delicate balance of Gravity Hammer vs. Sword vs. Ball that Grifball so heavily relies upon,” says multiplayer designer Max Grossman. “We leveraged Nokyard’s wealth of Grifball knowledge to try to make the most exciting Grifball yet, complete with thrusting Grif, Ground Pound kills, and ball throwing. Playing Grifball during playtests over the last few months has been some of the most fun we have had in the new building.”