Halo team promises ‘official scoop’ on series’ future later this year

Amid rumours of a PS5 remake of the first Halo, a major announcement is set to be made in just a few months time.

Last year, 343 Industries announced big changes were in store for the studio and the Halo series. For starters, the developer underwent a rebranding and is now called Halo Studios, dispelling rumours it was being kicked off the series.

It also confirmed that more than one new Halo video game is currently in development, though there’s still no official word on what any of them are. However, the team did show test footage of how future games will look in Unreal Engine 5, as the developer finally replaces the aging Slipspace Engine used in Halo Infinite.

Anyone who hoped for a big reveal at last month’s Xbox showcase was no doubt disappointed by the complete lack of Halo news, but that seems to be because it’s being saved for the Halo World Championship esports event later this year.

In a new blog post about the event, Halo Studios references how it used last year’s event to detail the aforementioned behind-the-scenes changes and its plans for multiple games.

As such, it intends to share the ‘official scoop on what Halo Studios has been working on’, so as to convince more people to attend the event live in Seattle, Washington, which is scheduled to run on the weekend of October 24.

The blog acknowledges the ‘fair amount of speculation about when and where more details might emerge about any of the multiple projects Halo Studios is actively working on,’ but stops short of discussing any specific rumours.

While we wouldn’t be surprised if Halo Studios is teasing something more innocuous, the obvious assumption (and the one we’re sure many fans will make) is that it’s planning to properly show off one of the new Halo projects.

What Halo games are in development?

No official details on any future Halo games have been shared yet, but a common rumour is that a new remake of the very first game, Halo: Combat Evolved, is in the works.

Such a project could also see the series make its debut on PlayStation 5, thanks to Microsoft’s new approach to releasing its exclusives on other platforms.

Another of Halo Studios’ possible projects is a new mainline game to follow on from Halo Infinite. Earlier this year, a March report detailed the long-term plans for Halo Infinite’s post-launch period and how those plans were ultimately scrapped.

It’s possible some of those ideas are being reworked for a sequel, but Halo Studios could also have opted to start from scratch. Either way, the goal of supporting Halo Infinite for 10 years isn’t happening, at least not to the degree the studio and Microsoft originally had in mind.

While Halo Infinite is a solid game, its post-launch suffered from long delays, abandoned content, and behind the scenes mismanagement. The multiplayer was never abandoned though, and has still seen updates and manages to regularly attract a few thousand players on Steam.

However, it’s evident that Halo is no longer as significant to the Xbox brand as it was during the heyday of the original trilogy, which was handled by the now Sony owned Bungie.

Nevertheless, the changes within Halo Studios suggest there’s a concerted effort to revitalise the series, especially with it being described as the ‘next chapter.’

And while some diehard Xbox enthusiasts will balk at the idea of Halo on PlayStation (or Switch 2), it would certainly help reach a new audience, especially if the series really does go back to basics with a new version of the first game.

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