343 Industries wants to assure everyone that Halo isn’t going anywhere and will continue developing the flagship shooter.
In a recent Tweet, the developer has stated that “Halo and Master Chief are here to stay. 343 Industries will continue to develop Halo now, and in the future, including epic stories, multiplayer, and more of what makes Halo great,” per 343i’s studio head, Piere Hintze.
— Halo (@Halo) January 21, 2023
It’s fair to say that Halo Infinite hasn’t had the best of starts, and even after a while, the game is still in a weird position. While the game is loved by many, others still don’t like the path 343 Industries has taken.
Following Microsoft’s decision to lay off more than 10,000 employees, many of which were Xbox game developers, such as 343 Industries, Bethesda Softworks, and The Coalition, there’s been a rumor floating around that 343 Industries is reportedly no longer actively developing Halo games. Instead, the developer would work with other developers, who would then work on Xbox’s flagship shooter.
While 343i is attempting to dismiss these rumors and reports, judging from the comments attached to this tweet, it would seem people are having missed feelings. On the one hand, many want the developer and Halo to flourish, while others want 343i to give up, even suggesting that the developer give Halo back to Bungie. The problem is that when Microsoft purchased Bungie, they purchased the rights to Bungie’s games. Then when Bungie wanted to separate, part of the deal was that Microsoft would continue to own the rights to Halo. Thus, Bungie went on to develop the highly successful Destiny series.
Between former 343i developers slamming its management, taking it set up Halo for failure, and those rumors and reports, stating that 343i will only manage Halo’s online components, while other developers will force on Halo’s single-player campaigns, it’s no wonder 343i has gone on the offensive. However, the question is, is this merely damage control, or is 343i sincere?
Hopefully, 343i gives a breakdown of what we can expect for Halo’s future during the upcoming Xbox Developer Direct, which takes place on January 25th, 2023.
As fans of Halo, what do you think is going to happen to the game’s future? Sound off in the comments.