"Halo and Master Chief are here to stay": 343 Industries dismisses rumors of moving away from the flagship Xbox series

sportskeeda.com:

The studio has made it extremely clear that Xbox's flagship, Halo, isn't going anywhere out of the hands of 343 Industries. The news comes at a time when the market has been filled with rumors, all suggesting that the mega-franchise could change ownership. It comes on the back of troubling times for the studio, which has been gravely affected by job cuts amidst a global slowdown.

When the news of the downsizing broke, many felt this could end 343 Industries and its connection with its premier franchise. Since going separate ways with Bungie, Xbox has relied on its in-house studio to develop one of its most popular franchises.

However, things haven't always been vital in terms of the quality of the product, and all hell broke loose with Halo Infinite. The most recent release was supposed to be the foundation of the future for the franchise and take it in a new direction.

Its launch was quite successful in numbers, and new players quickly joined the free-to-play multiplayer modes. Sadly, things rapidly went downhill as 343 Industries couldn't meet the expectations of its player base.

Irrespective of best efforts, things have gone differently than planned. Delays and unnecessary changes have yet to help either, with the cancelation of the campaign co-op causing massive animosity. Then came the issue of the global slowdown, which has cost the studio heavily. Out of all the Xbox studios, 343 Industries has had the worst in job losses.

All of this culminated in speculations that Xbox would take Halo out of their hands. The franchise's future, which looks quite bleak, needs to find something revolutionary. A significant role will be played in the upcoming Tatanka mode, which could rekindle the interest of the player base.

But it has