Spartan Jameson Locke, the leader of Fireteam Osiris, is the secondary protagonist of Halo 5: Guardians, where he was tasked to bring back Master Chief to the UNSC on charges of treason. At the end of the game, Locke learns that Master Chief and Blue Team were not the traitors — but instead, it is Chief’s AI Cortana, and she has declared war on the UNSC after taking control of the Guardians and a huge number of human-made AIs. Trying to avoid and plan a counterattack against Cortana, UNSC’s toughest warship Infinity goes on the run and ends up in the orbit of a new Halo ring that kickstarted the story of Halo Infinite. Considering there is a time skip between the end of Halo 5 and the start of Infinite, it’s no wonder that the series’ fans are left wondering about what became of Spartan Locke and the members of Fireteam Osiris, whether they’re dead in between games or maybe something else happened to them.
If you’re curious about Spartan Locke’s whereabouts, apparently, there is a hint of what happens to him in Halo Infinite.
Is Spartan Locke Dead in Halo Infinite?
The short answer is: for now, no one knows for sure.
The long answer: there are references to Spartan Locke in as well as outside of the game. First, in the “Infinity’s Approach #02 – Captain’s Report” audio log, before Halo Infinite’s story began, Captain Lasky said that Spartan Locke is currently running an operation called BREAKER TRIP.
“Spartan Locke is currently well underway with the next stages of BREAKER TRIP, but each time out I wonder if we pressed our luck too far.”
In another audio log, “Recovered Files #04 – The Weapon”, Dr. Katherine Halsey ordered Master Chief and the new AI called Weapon to retrieve Cortana to the UNSC for deletion. If Master Chief can’t do it, then they will order Spartan Locke for the job instead.
“Halsey: The weapon will lock her down. You will receive Cortana and bring her back here.
Master Chief: For execution.
Halsey: For deletion. We are at war, Master Chief. If you do not think you can do this… Now is the time to step down. I am sure Spartan Locke is available.
Master Chief: That won’t be necessary.”
One of the audio logs also said that Master Chief’s old crew, Blue Team, was sent to Reach by Dr. Halsey. This means, aside from Captain Lasky and Dr. Halsey, no major characters from Halo 5 are actually aboard the Infinity.
However, just ahead of Halo Infinite’s release, one of the Halo Infinite Mega Bloks toy sets featured a Brute — Hyperius from The Hand of Atriox — wearing Spartan Locke’s helmet as a shoulder pad. According to a YouTube video, there’s also a hidden voice line spoken by a Grunt that refers to the toy that can be heard when you activate the IWHBYD Skull.
“Man, that Spartan Locke sure did know how to get ahead — which is why Hyperius used his helmet as arm decoration!”
But of course, a discarded helmet is by no means an official confirmation that Jameson Locke has become a Brute grub. Considering Xbox head Phil Spencer and 343 Industries have said that they are planning to support Halo Infinite for “a decade” with updates and changes, I think the fate of Spartan Locke and Fireteam Osiris (and the whole Reclaimer Saga casts) are being kept ambiguous in case they need their appearances in future campaign DLC. Stay tuned at The Nerd Stash for more updates about Halo Infinite and if 343 Industries has revealed what become of Spartan Locke.
Related:
Halo: MCC Season 6 – Who is Fireteam Raven?
Halo Infinite is now available on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
