During the 2024 Halo World Championship, fans were treated to an unexpected announcement that signals a new era for the franchise. 343 Industries, the studio responsible for Halo since Bungie’s departure, is rebranding as Halo Studios. Alongside the new name, the team revealed that all future Halo projects will be developed using Unreal Engine 5, with multiple new games already in the works.
A New Chapter Unfolds
Studio Head Pierre Hintze explained that this move marks the beginning of a third chapter for Halo. “If you really break Halo down, there have been two very distinct chapters. Chapter 1 – Bungie. Chapter 2 – 343 Industries,” Hintze said. “Now, I think we have an audience which is hungry for more. So we’re not just going to try to improve the efficiency of development but change the recipe of how we make Halo games. So, we start a new chapter today.”
Why Unreal Engine 5?
Switching from the proprietary Slipspace Engine to Unreal Engine 5 is a significant step aimed at streamlining development and meeting modern player expectations. “We believe that the consumption habits of gamers have changed—the expectations of how fast their content is available,” Hintze noted. “On Halo Infinite, we were developing a tech stack that was supposed to set us up for the future, and games at the same time.”
COO Elizabeth Van Wyck added, “The way we made Halo games before doesn’t necessarily work as well for the way we want to make games for the future. So part of the conversation we had was about how we help the team focus on making games, versus making the tools and the engines.”
Studio Art Director Chris Matthews pointed out that some components of the Slipspace Engine are nearly 25 years old. “Although 343 were developing it continuously, there are aspects of Unreal that Epic has been developing for some time, which are unavailable to us in Slipspace—and would have taken huge amounts of time and resources to try and replicate,” he said.
Introducing Project Foundry
To test the capabilities of Unreal Engine 5 within the Halo universe, the team developed Project Foundry. While not a new game or a traditional tech demo, Foundry served as a research project to explore what future Halo titles could look like using the new engine.
“We built things that we truly believe in, and the content that we’ve built—or at least a good percentage of it—could travel anywhere inside our games in the future if we so desire it,” Matthews explained.
The project showcased three distinct biomes:
- Pacific Northwest-inspired landscape: Featuring waterfalls, mountains, and lush foliage.
- Coldlands: A frozen region with snow-covered plateaus and reflective ice surfaces.
- Blightlands: A new, alien environment consumed by the parasitic Flood.
Staying True to Halo’s Essence
Despite these significant changes, the team is committed to preserving what fans love about Halo. “We’re all really obsessed about what our players love about Halo,” Matthews said. “It’s the lore. It’s the physics. Playing as the Chief, you’re this huge tank of a soldier—it’s the way that he moves, he feels.”
Hintze echoed this sentiment, emphasizing careful consideration in maintaining the game’s core mechanics. “We are very careful about the decisions we’re making in that space—down to the precision and authenticity of the weapons, the authenticity of the animations,” he stated.
Looking Ahead
While specific details about upcoming games remain under wraps, it’s clear that multiple projects are in development. Halo Infinite will continue to receive support through the Slipspace Engine, including new Operations and Forge mode updates. Year 4 of the Halo Championship Series has also been announced, continuing with Halo Infinite.
Halo Studios is focusing on engaging more with the player community for feedback. “We’re seeking earlier and earlier, wider and wider feedback from our players,” Van Wyck said. “At the end of the day, it’s not just how do we evaluate, it’s how do our players evaluate it?”
This rebranding is an insane announcement from the studio. Time will tell what it spells for the series moving forward, but they seem excited about it so I’ll just fall in line until the next Halo is announced.
