Halo Studios Switches to Unreal Engine 5 to Make "The Best Possible" Halo Titles

Microsoft has exciting news for Halo fans: multiple new Halo games are on the horizon, accompanied by a significant rebranding. The studio previously known as 343 Industries, responsible for the iconic military sci-fi franchise, is now officially "Halo Studios."

Xbox Game Studio's 343 Industries Rebrands to Halo Studios

Halo Studios, the Microsoft-owned entity that succeeded series originator Bungie, has confirmed that several new Halo projects are in development. This announcement coincides with the studio's rebranding from 343 Industries to Halo Studios.

Studio Head Pierre Hintze shared his vision in an announcement post, stating, "If you really break Halo down, there have been two very distinct chapters. Chapter 1 – Bungie. Chapter 2 – 343 Industries. 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."

In a significant move, Halo Studios has decided to leverage Epic Games' Unreal Engine 5 (UE5) for their upcoming titles. UE5 is renowned for delivering high-quality graphics and realistic game physics, a choice that has garnered praise from industry leaders. Epic CEO Tim Sweeney expressed his enthusiasm, tweeting, "The first Halo redefined console gaming in 2001, and over the generations Halo has pushed the state of the art forward with amazing gameplay, story, and music. Epic is honored that the Halo Studios team has chosen our tools to help with their future work!"

Halo's lead developers have outlined their new direction for the beloved franchise. Hintze elaborated on their focus, saying, "We had a disproportionate focus on trying to create the conditions to be successful in servicing Halo Infinite. The switch to UE5 will allow us to make more Halo games with the highest level of quality possible. We want a singular focus. Everyone in this place is here to make the best possible Halo games."

Halo franchise COO Elizabeth Van Wyck emphasized player-centric development, stating, "At the end of the day, if we build the games that our players want to play, that's how we'll be successful. That's what should motivate what we build. That's also what this structure has done – we want the people that are day-in-day-out making the games to be the ones to make the decisions on the games." Van Wyck also highlighted their commitment to gathering extensive feedback from the player base as they chart this new course for the franchise. "At the end of the day, it's not just how do we evaluate, it's how do our players evaluate it?"

Studio Art Director Chris Matthew addressed the technological shift, explaining, "Respectfully, some components of Slipspace are almost 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."

The transition to UE5 is expected to streamline the development process, allowing for more frequent updates and new content. Van Wyck noted, "It's not just about how long it takes to bring a game to market, but how long it takes for us to update the game, bring new content to players, adapt to what we're seeing our players want." With Halo Studios' ambitious plans underway, the studio has begun recruiting talent for these new projects.