We’re now dwelling in a timeline that will have been unimaginable to understand for a grunt-squashing teen in 2007: Activision is making the following Halo sport. And, now, followers have questions in regards to the change. Is that this 12 months’s Halo Fest nonetheless occurring, regardless of sweeping layoffs at Halo Studios? Will Activision’s new sport reboot the lore? Can Grasp Chief lastly, please, catch a break?
“We’re eliminating 268 roles throughout Halo Studios, different first-party studios, and the XGS administration and central features layer,” Xbox Studios chief Matt Booty wrote in an announcement this week as a part of the console maker’s wide-ranging restructure. “Activision may even be growing the following Halo title, led by a brand new, purpose-built group that’s separate from ongoing improvement and plans for Name of Responsibility. A small group at Halo Studios will proceed supporting the Halo neighborhood and video games in-market.”
Xbox’s restructuring laid off 1,600 staff this summer time, with an additional 1,600 job cuts deliberate over the course of the 12 months, but it surely additionally rejigged a number of studios. Obsidian is now a part of Bethesda, for instance, and Halo is now a part of Activision, together with Uncommon and World’s Edge.
It is a dramatic shift for a franchise that was as soon as Xbox’s golden goose, and followers are conflicted about what it means for the way forward for the enduring sci-fi shooter sequence. One large fear is Activision could reboot the story and throw away lore that is been constructed up throughout 25 years – or, maybe, scrap some of the prolonged universe lore, as Disney did to Star Wars when it took over that galaxy.
Truthfully that’s my greatest concern. I concern that they’ll simply do a common reset on Halo’s established lore.
If that occurs, I’m out https://t.co/SkpENQih3u
— Nakai Targaryen (Covie Canon/ACOIAF) (@NakaiCanon) September 22, 2026
Frankly I am out in the event that they DON’T do a semi-reboot and axe ALL of 343’s lore. There’s zero future for any tales which share a continuity with Halo 4, 5, and Infinite. https://t.co/ti32iP4qBv
— supermad (@madis259) September 22, 2026
gotta love how the mass resetting of Halo in addition to a FULL reboot is occurring proper after the franchise left off on a clean fucking canvas. Ripe for any prospects. Backwards firm. https://t.co/WV0TqHXPuA
— Moe (@MOTMRW) September 23, 2026
Scorching take, however I would like Activision to reboot Halo again to simply after Halo 3, no 343 Forerunner lore, and deal with a battle story about humanity rebuilding and components of the galaxy resisting that.
Halo has strayed too removed from humanity whereas attempting to make Chief human, sarcastically.
— John Welfare (@Welfare_JBP) September 22, 2026
“That might be one other horrible thought in a string of horrible concepts,” one Redditor wrote in response to a rumor suggesting Activision’s Halo is, in truth, a reboot. “Uncertain tbh. Restarting after Halo 3 perhaps at most,” one other mentioned. The duality of predominant, I assume?
One other large query mark hangs over Halo Fest Seattle, which was scheduled to rejoice the sequence’ twenty fifth anniversary with followers in December. There’s been plenty of hypothesis these previous few days about whether or not the stay occasion goes forward, contemplating most of Halo Studios has been gutted. I’ve requested Xbox for remark and can report again if I hear something.
In an announcement given to Kotaku, Activision president Rob Kostich mentioned the corporate’s objective is to “make the best Halo sport ever, worthy of its universe and legacy, whereas staying true to what made gamers like it within the first place.” Kostich’s assertion is actually obscure sufficient that issues might go both manner – it seems like no matter studio finally ends up taking up the sequence hasn’t even been assembled but, so discussions about lore most likely will not occur for fairly a while. Regardless, binning twenty years price of tales and actually cool world constructing looks as if an enormous disgrace. There’s nonetheless a lot untapped materials within the novels that is ripe for a online game adaptation, akin to Halo Attain, as effectively.
And, I agree with a faction of the Halo neighborhood, components of the post-Bungie period had been a large number – messy to observe as a participant with out studying each printed Halo guide and, most likely, messy for a developer attempting to determine a wise path ahead. However Halo Infinite ended with a clear slate, of kinds. Cortana 1.0 is gone, a brand new risk is on the horizon, and all of the area magic nonsense has seemingly been forgotten about. Why begin from scratch, once more?