Best Halo Infinite Upgrades: Spartan Cores Explained

The best Halo Infinite upgrades are something that can seriously change the way Master Chief fights, because while he's never had access to things like the Grapple Shot or Drop Wall before, they are absolute game-changers. Halo Infinite has Spartan Cores - skill points, essentially - littered throughout its open world and collecting them all will mean you can upgrade your Halo Infinite abilities, but until you do collect every last one of them, you'll need to prioritise upgrading specific powers. Here are the best Halo Infinite upgrades to focus on during the early game.

• Wondering what our thoughts are on the single player? Read our Halo Infinite campaign review

Best Halo Infinite Upgrades: Spartan Cores Explained

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There are a lot of Spartan Core locations to find so while we don't have every single one listed for you, you likely won't be running low on them. Spartan Cores are Halo Infinite's version of skill points but rather than earning them through XP and progressing through the story, you need to find them in the open world.

They're marked on the minimap by the chevron/arrow icon, and they look like crates with a green glow inside. Unlike armour lockers, which are traditional locker room-esque lockers, these crates are cubed and make a noise when you're nearby, so they are fairly easy to hone in on. Each one provides one single Spartan Core, which you can then use for the following upgrades.

Best Halo Infinite Upgrades: Grapple Shot - First Strike

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The Grapple Shot is the first Halo Infinite ability you unlock during the campaign and out of all of Master Chief's tricks, it's by far the coolest. Drawing inspiration from Titanfall 2's movement mechanics, the bulky green armour-suited Spartan turns into Spider-Man, swinging from cliff face to tree with ease.

The First Strike ability is the third unlock in the path, so you'll need six Spartan Cores in total to reach it, but it is so worth it. First Strike allows you to melee attack while grappling an enemy, then when you collide, it'll electrify your foe. When you get the final upgrade, Reachfall, the electrify effect will emit around your target, shocking any other enemies nearby.

Best Halo Infinite Upgrades: Shield Core - Fortress

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This one's a little cheeky because all four of the upgrades for the Shield Core in Halo Infinite are the same: Increase shield capacity by an additional 15% of base shield strength. This means that for just one Spartan Core, you can buff your shield, which is especially useful if you're struggling on the higher difficulty levels.

Of course, how much you invest into this is up to you; you know exactly what you're going to get from each one, so if you think having a total of 60% additional shield capacity will be a game-changer for you, then go right ahead.

Best Halo Infinite Upgrades: Threat Sensor - Seeker

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The Threat Sensor is most useful in the campaign missions, which see you infiltrate Forerunner structures and enemies can hide behind all manner of obstacles. It reveals any enemy location within, but once you put just one Spartan Core into it, you can increase that radius by 50% thanks to Seeker, which covers a much larger surface area.

The later Threat Sensor upgrades are incredibly useful, especially Omniscience which reveals the remaining health of any enemies tagged by the Threat Sensor, but Seeker is the best one to get initially. That increased 50% radius really comes in handy.

Best Halo Infinite Upgrades: Drop Wall - Direct Current

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For the Drop Wall, we recommend beelining right to the end of the skill tree. The first three upgrades essentially just make the Drop Wall stronger and increase its size, but Direct Current gives it a much better improvement.

It'll cost a total of nine Spartan Cores to reach, but when you have Direct Current, any shots you fire through the wall will become electrified. So much like the Grapple Shot and First Strike, you can stun enemies, and by this point the Drop Wall will be so much stronger you don't run much risk of destroying any sections of it.

Best Halo Infinite Upgrades: Thruster - Escape Velocity

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The Thruster is the fifth and final ability Master Chief will obtain during Halo Infinite, but it's also unfortunately the weakest. That's not to say it doesn't have its uses though. The Thruster allows you to dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge your way out of gunfire, although it starts out fairly weak.

Once you've invested six Spartan Cores, increasing the power and duration along the way, using the Thruster will also activate Active Camo for four seconds, making you completely invisible. This means it's great for getting out of a tricky situation, especially during some late-game boss fights... no spoilers, though.

Now you know all of the best Halo Infinite upgrades, why not read up on everything you need to know about Halo Infinite split-screen?