HDR lighting may not have been in the cards for Halo Wars 2 at launch, but that's about to change. In a preview of the release notes for the next patch to the game, 343 Industries has revealed HDR support will be added for those with "compatible hardware" at some point in the coming week.

What that presumably means is that anyone with an Xbox One S and HDR compatible TV should see a picture quality boost right away with brighter whites, poppy colors, and an increased contrast in between. Those playing on PC with a new HDR monitor (a relative rarity at the moment) should be able to take part as well.

Of course, there's a lot more expected in the patch across the board. Here's a look:

New Feature: Support for HDR lighting is now enabled for players with compatible hardware!

Players should no longer have a chance of loading into the game without the ability to issue any commands

Fixed a crash that rarely occurred after signing in on the Main Menu

Fixed a crash when playing against AI in Firefight or Skirmish mode

Fixed a desync that could occur in ranked 2v2 games

Fixed a crash on "Last Stand" that could occur from loading from an old save from a previous release

Fixed a crash that could occur when attacking the first barricade in the Prologue

Added allied view indicator to the mini-map

Added 2 new themes to "Proving Ground" Blitz map

Made "Restoration Drones" get more expensive when it is upgraded to its 3rd tier

Adjusted the Foundry so that its always hit by Hunters' and Marines' upgraded projectiles when attacked

Added better "Combat Salvage" visual effects when a unit dies and is immediately built back at base

Removed an exploit with "Combat Salvage"

Reworked a targeting exploit that could occur with using "Extraction"

Pelicans and Darts should no longer leave floating lights above bases

Made it so that "Ghost in the Machine" would no longer disable Colony's "Combat Repair" on the units it borrowed

Spartans no longer strip upgrades from vehicles they hijack

Some tech upgrades were not applying completely to some units

Fixed an issue with moving units not properly attacking Garrisoned units

Units teleported off the map are now teleported back to your base

Spartans no longer increase the level of units they hijack

Made card pack descriptions show up in the appropriate language for France and Taiwan

Added text to the Pelican Transport level 2 when selected on the leader power radial

Added "Upgrade Complete" voice over for various leaders that was missing

Adjusted the audio to the Forerunner structure on Highway to remove the high frequency that could be unpleasant to hear

Audio/music should no longer drop from games played through a playlist

Locust beam is no longer audible in the fog of war

Hellbringers should no longer play Kinsano voiceover when being attacked by an enemy Spartan

HDR is a pretty big deal for those who have the hardware, arguably improving picture quality more than even the bump from 1080p to 4K. The next patch is currently set to drop sometime next week alongside the next DLC leader, but there's no exact ETA currently available.

See at the Microsoft Store