The ever present (at least during the pandemic) shortage of computer components has claimed an unusual victim in 343 Industries.
On Friday, the Halo Championship series began with a prize pool of $250 000. The problem? The organisers weren’t able to get a hold of Xbox consoles that teams could compete on.
Instead, teams would play on Xbox Series X development consoles which were set to retail mode. While development consoles are functionally identical to the console you might have below your TV, they are drastically different in appearance and look more like VCRs than consoles.
While 343 Industries and the teams that participated in the tournament were at least able to go ahead, this is yet another sign of how badly the shortage of semiconductors has become over the last two years.
Heads up open bracket players – you'll be playing this weekend on Series X development consoles. They're functionally identical and will be operating in "Retail" mode so it's the exact same experience, they just look a little different.
Why? Global supply chain shortage is real.
— Tashi (@Tashi343i) December 15, 2021
Myriad industries have been affected by the shortage including the smartphone sector, computer component manufacturers and of course console makers as well.
Unfortunately, ramping up production is not as simple as you may think. The folks responsible for making semiconductors are highly trained and the machinery used is incredibly specialised.
For example, Intel announced that it was breaking ground on two new chip factories in September. Those factories will only become operational in 2024 and it will cost an estimated $20 billion to build the necessary facilities.
Experts then expect the chip shortage to last another two years as supply chains recover from incredibly demand experienced over the last two years.
Despite the technical woes, the HCS Kickoff Major Raleigh 2021 was a success with it becoming the most viewed Halo esports event of all time to date.
[Source – Kotaku]
