The next Halo game from Halo Studios was reportedly still years away from launch before Microsoft canceled it this week.
Microsoft continued its Xbox “reset” this week by gutting Halo Studios, leaving a skeleton crew to manage existing games in the series, and handing the Halo franchise to Call of Duty company Activision. Activision is setting up a new team to build the next mainline Halo game, leaving what remains of Halo Studios out of the picture.
Microsoft also moved Sea of Thieves developer Rare and Age of Empires developer World’s Edge under the Activision umbrella as part of the studio shakeup. It made a very different call with the troubled Halo Studios, however, which has seen multiple Halo projects canceled.
According to The Verge, the next game under Halo Studios was years away from shipping, “so Microsoft pulled the plug instead.” The last mainline Halo game, Halo Infinite, launched nearly five years ago, in December 2021.
Halo Studios has endured a tumultous time in recent years, with significant leadership changes sparking questions about the future of the company and its games. Staff affected by this week’s layoffs have spoken out across social media this week. One former employee took to LinkedIn to say: “I’m a jumble of thoughts and emotions, but mostly relief. I was miserable for the last year and a half and it’ll be nice to feel something different.”
Microsoft obtained Halo when it acquired its original developer, Bungie, in 2000. After helping establish the Xbox console with Halo and Halo 2, Bungie split from Microsoft to become independent again in 2007. It went on to work on looter shooter Destiny as part of a high-profile, 10-year publishing deal with Activision. Meanwhile, Microsoft set up 343 Industries, so named after 343 Guilty Spark from the Halo games, to take Halo into a new era.
2012’s Halo 4 was the first Halo game released by 343. It was followed by 2015’s Halo 5: Guardians, which in turn was followed by 2021’s much-delayed Halo Infinite. Halo Infinite in particular struggled, and this year’s Halo: Campaign Evolved, a remake of the beloved first Halo game, suffered problems of its own.
In 2024, 343 Industries changed its name to Halo Studios and announced plans to work on multiple new Halo games that would all be developed on Epic’s Unreal Engine. The announcements were unveiled in a seven-minute video shown ahead of the Halo World Championship’s grand finals, which showcased the results of Project Foundry — an experimental project designed to show a Halo game built using Unreal Engine. While it was not much more than a tech demo, the video offered a glimpse at a fresh beginning for Xbox’s flagship franchise in the wake of Halo Infinite’s troubled launch.
Questions remain over what Activision plans to do with Halo now it’s in charge of its fate. Microsoft has said it’s setting up “a new, purpose-built team that is separate from ongoing development and plans for Call of Duty.” Microsoft has yet to say when the next Halo game will come out, or if Activision plans to reboot the series or rotate it into its schedule of releases for Call of Duty, which hasn’t missed an annual release for 20 years.
Xbox Games Series Tier List
Xbox Games Series Tier List
Rob Kostich, president of Activision issued the following statement:
“We’re thrilled to welcome Halo, Rare, and World’s Edge to Activision. It’s an honor and a responsibility that we do not take lightly. These teams and their games have inspired fans around the world for decades.
“For Halo, our goal is clear: make the greatest Halo game ever, worthy of its universe and legacy, while staying true to what made players love it in the first place. It is a bold ambition, one that this franchise deserves. We have already begun assembling a purpose-built team, unique in capability and talent, ready and excited to deliver this next chapter with the community.
“To the World’s Edge and Rare teams, we can’t wait to get to work together.”
New Xbox CEO Asha Sharma is looking to double down on the company’s biggest franchises, such as Fallout, Minecraft, and Halo, and release big new games in those franchises more frequently. Activision releases a brand new, mainline Call of Duty game ever year. Sharma may be hoping some of that rubs off on Halo.
Wesley Yin-Poole
Director, News
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
