Microsoft Has Revealed That All Future 'Halo' Games Will be Made Using Unreal Engine, And That Multiple Projects Are In Development
Image Source: Radio Times
Microsoft is making a few moves to bring the Halo franchise fully into modern gaming. The studio announced that all future games will be made using Unreal Engine 5. They shared a video of familiar and new territories, all made with the new engine, and announced multiple projects are in development. To that end, the developer 343 Industries is changing its name to Halo Studios. Studio head Pierre Hintze explained, “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.”
Hintze added, “We believe that the consumption habits of gamers have changed – the expectations of how fast their content is available. 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.” These changes allow Halo Studios to distribute their workforce across multiple projects and will lead to faster production of games.
RELATED:
Image Source: TechEBlog
According to COO Elizabeth van Wyck, “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. Part of that is [in how we build the game], but another part is the recruiting. How long does it take to ramp somebody up to be able to actually create assets that show up in your game?”
To test the software, they created environments in the new software and named the project Foundry project. Their showcase video featured a biome based on the Pacific Northwest and a Coldlands location in a deep freeze. The studio heads talked about putting equal importance on the feel of the game and the details of the graphics. While they shared no specifics on the multiple upcoming projects, choosing instead to wait until they're closer to reality to announce them, Hintze affirmed that “Everyone in this place is here to make the best possible Halo games.” The new environments can be seen in the video below.
READ NEXT:
Latest News
Featured
