Halo Is Now in Activision's Hands, and a Reboot Is Rumored
Wake me when you need me.
Activision is officially in charge of Halo now. Microsoft announced on September 22 that the series is moving under the Call of Duty publisher. Microsoft has owned Activision since it bought Activision Blizzard in 2023 (Kotaku). Xbox chief content officer Matt Booty said the next Halo game will come from "a new, purpose-built team" that's separate from Call of Duty. Activision president Rob Kostich said the goal is to make "the greatest Halo game ever" (GameSpot).
The move came with 268 layoffs across Halo Studios, other Xbox teams and the central Xbox Game Studios group (The Game Business). Rare and World's Edge, the Age of Empires studio, moved to Activision as well. Halo Studios, the team formerly known as 343 Industries, is now a small support team. It looks after the Halo games that are already out. Senior franchise story lead Jeff Easterling and senior writer Ken Peters were among those laid off, each after more than 12 years on the series (Drezzed).
What's the latest on Halo, and what are the rumors?
Halo Studios still has a couple of things on its plate. Halo Fest is still happening in the Seattle area in December, which Halo Studios' Tashi Hasangjeka confirmed shortly after the layoffs (Insider Gaming). The series also turns 25 on November 15.
The rest comes from insiders, so take it with a grain of salt. Rebs Gaming reported in early October that Halo Studios is down to roughly 30 people. That team is reportedly working on one last free update for Halo: Campaign Evolved, with Firefight and Theater modes targeted for December. According to the same report, "not one single Halo Studios person has gone to Activision," and the remaining staff expect to be let go after Halo Fest (That Park Place). Xbox hasn't confirmed any of that.
The biggest rumor is about the next game itself. Insider TechnicalHalo claims Activision is treating it as "a rebooted new chapter whose lore will not continue" (Wccftech). Rebs Gaming has also claimed that Sledgehammer Games, one of Activision's Call of Duty studios, built a Halo prototype before the handoff. Neither Microsoft nor Activision has commented on either claim. Kotaku expects the next game is still "many, many years away" (Kotaku).
For a lot of us, Halo was the reason to own an Xbox in the first place, so seeing it handed to the Call of Duty publisher is a STRANGE feeling (especially for anyone who lost whole weekends to Halo 2 matchmaking). Whether this turns into a great fresh start or Call of Duty with Spartans is the big question, and we probably won't know for years. Our thoughts are with everyone at Halo Studios and across Xbox who lost their jobs.
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Header image and Cortana screenshot are official Halo: Campaign Evolved screenshots from Halo Studios and Xbox Game Studios, via Steam.
