Before kicking off the 2024 Halo World Championships, Microsoft announced a "new dawn" for the Halo series - with 343 Studios rebranding (and expanding) as Halo Studios while also revealing a new game engine and a new philosophy.
Going forward, the Halo series will now run on Unreal Engine 5. All future projects will use this engine with "multiple new games" now in development. Studio Head Pierre Hintze said it was less of a clean break and more like the turning of a page:
“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 improve the efficiency of development, but change the recipe of how we make Halo games. So, we start a new chapter today... Everyone is in this place is here to make the best possible Halo games.”
The announcement video includes an early look at the new direction Halo Studios is now heading, including some footage of the team experimenting with Unreal Engine 5. To be clear, this footage is "not a game" but a research project known as 'Foundry' (a location made up of three unique biomes, where the Halo rings are born) - allowing Halo Studios to prepare itself for the "next steps" of making Halo games.
"It’s fair to say that our intent is that the majority of what we showcased in Foundry is expected to be in projects which we are building, or future projects."
Halo Studios has confirmed it's working with Unreal's creators Epic Games to ensure the series can reach new heights. The shift to UE5 also means it's now a "smoother process" to bring on new talent as projects get further into development (whereas new hires previously had to learn how to use Slipspace Engine). It means Halo can grow "more quickly and organically" than before. The team says it will also be seeking "earlier" and "wider" feedback from players.
