Halo infinity developer 343 Industries informed Twitter on Saturday part a brief note about the future of the franchise. “Halo and Master Chief are here to stay,” 343 said in a statement attributed to studio head Pierre Hintze. “343 Industries will continue to develop Halo now and in the future, including epic storytelling, multiplayer and more of what makes Halo great.”
The statement comes after Microsoft confirmed it would lay off 10,000 employees before the end of March. According to from Bloomberg Jason Schreier343 Industries was “hit hard” through the restructuring and lost Halo veteran and creative director Joe Staten – who joined the studio in 2020 to help bring Endless across the finish line – to Microsoft’s publishing house. The transfer of States follows a handful of other high-profile departures, including that of Slipspace engine lead developer David Berger and 343 co-founder Bonnie Ross. Schreier couldn’t add a number to the cuts to 343, but he said EndlessThe company’s campaign team was particularly affected by the cuts. Prior to the layoffs, the studio was also on a “long-running” hiring freeze and had lost many contractors in recent weeks and months. A former 343 employee blamed the layoffs on “incompetent leadership at the top”.
Microsoft released Halo infinity in 2021 to generally positive reviewsbut the game has struggled to maintain a consistent player base ever since. On steamfor instance, Endless currently averages around 4,000 players per day, a sharp drop from the 100,000 players it averaged at launch. More than a year after the release of the game, Microsoft has also not announced any new campaign content for it Endless. Halo fans have good reason to worry about the future of the franchise.
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