Halohas been a recognizable videogame brand for over twenty years now. When it first began in 2001, it was a trendsetter when it came to not only console shooters, but shooters in general. Its sequels would go on to innovate and improve on its original formula, forming the bedrock of modern online gaming and innovating social features that brought players together to form a robust and diverse community.
RELATED:Halo Infinite’s Six-Month Seasons Are Problematic
As of 2022, however, it’s been a while since thisHalomade an appearance. The series was given up by creator,Bungiein 2011 to 343 Industries, the developer formed by Microsoft to helm the series thereafter. This transfer of stewardship has, for lack of a better term, had its ups and downs over the last ten years. While some have found plenty of enjoyment in the games that 343 has made in that time, many have felt their output to be stale and derivative, leaving both the series and its fans in need of series revitalizing in more than one category.
6Developer Transparency and Communication Overhaul
343 Industrieshas never been known for how they engage with the halo community. Many of its memberswould go so far as to label them as liarsfor some of the things they’ve said or omitted over the years. Even now withHalo: Infinite, fans have accused 343 of stretching the truth too often, being too closed off from the community, and not adequately addressing its concerns about the game, such as the lack of content,unpopular monetization policies, and so on.
RELATED:Halo Infinite Can’t Rely on Season Updates to Add New Maps
This has created tension between the fans and the developers, which has been festering for quite some time now. Fans are finding it harder to support 343s endeavors and 343 in turn are less inclined to take fan feedback into consideration. All of this creates a toxic environment for both fans and developers, and it’s one of the things about the franchise that needs a drastic overhaul.
5A Return to Content Complete Launches
Halo: Reachwas the lastHalogame to launch in a truly “completed” state. That is to say, it didn’t launch on September 14th, 2010 without any fan-favorite features, only for them to be promised at a later date. Once 343 Industries took over the franchise this began to change, however.Halo 4,Halo: The Master Chief Collection,Halo 5: Guardians,andHalo: Infinitehave all suffered fromincomplete and/or buggy launches. Things like Forge, firefight, file sharing, campaign coop, split-screen, and a whole litany of game modes, weapons, maps, etc. have been missing on launch for pretty much every 343 developed title in the series.
This frustrating trend by 343, to release practically unfinished games, has undoubtedly been one of the driving factors in their games suffering significant player population degradation over time, and it must be reversed in order forHaloto succeed in the ways it used to. It’s not a good look when a series that was once known for being content-rich is now starving for it on day one.
4Stop Relying on Common Gameplay Trends
Halo 4was rather infamous for being, as many fans have described, “Call ofHalo.” This was referring to many of the mechanics that 343 chose to incorporate into the game that were also recognizableCall of Dutymechanics, such as custom loadouts, perks, universal sprinting, etc. WithHalo5, some of this went away due to fan outcry, however, many other trendy mechanics of the day were added in their place. These include advanced mobility mechanics like thrusting and clambering (mantling), and also the addition of Aim Down Sights style mechanics.
RELATED:Halo Infinite Originally Had Hero Shooter Elements
Halo: Infinitefeatures a number of common gaming trends as well, such as an open-world single-player, movement mechanics like sprint and clamber, as well as a new focus on “free to play” monetization andcontent strategies. The common theme here seems to be that 343 goes out of their way to makeHaloas trendy as is acceptable, relative to when the game’s release that is. This progression of unoriginality seems like a bizarre move on 343s part when one considers how groundbreakingHalohas been and could be still if they stopped chasing trends.
3A Need to Prioritize New Gaming Features
Halo: Infinite really struggles to offer players something they can’t get elsewhere. Sure it might feel different to play in comparison toBattlefieldorCall of Duty, but it doesn’t offer anything truly innovative for either the series or the genre. The olderHalogames were some of the most innovative shooters of their day.Halo 2introduced the online lobby system that’s still used today andHalo 3added all-new social features like forge, theater mode, and file sharing.Halo 3: ODSTflipped the script in both gameplay and narrative, whilst adding new fan-favorite modes like Firefight.
RELATED:Halo Infinite Dev Addresses Development Concerns and Admits ‘the Community Is Simply Out of Patience’
Halo 4,5,andInfinite, have barely moved the needle in comparison. In addition to an increasingly frustrating tendency to remove content with each release, 343 hasn’t seemed to prioritize truly new ideas and features for their games. This trend in 343s development style has resulted in stale and derivative ideas that only serve to detract from the Halo experience rather than enhance it. Innovation has always beenHalo’slifeblood, meanwhile playing it safe has done it zero favors.
2A Return to a Consistent Narrative
There doesn’t seem to be any sort of Narrative cohesion between 343’sHalogames.Halo 4began with the Didact returning to exact their revenge upon humanity. It was an interesting setup, and supposedly it was to be the start of a new era forHalo. This was until he was killed offscreen in a tie-in comic series and never returned.Halo 5then rolls around and Cortana, who’d sacrificed herself in the previous game, returned as the main villain. Now finally withHalo: Infinite, Cortana is dead and no longer a villain, because a new race calledThe Endlesshas taken up that mantle.
This reeks of poor planning and a lack of confidence. During the Bungie Era, each of the game’s stories fit together to form a complete narrative all the way fromHalo: ReachtoHalo 3.With 343’s games, it seems that each of their games is a beginning chapter in a saga that may or may not see further development. Committing to a singular vision for the story is healthier for the universe than trying to hit the reset button on it three times in a row.
1Stop Being Afraid of Bungie’s Legacy
Fans have noted over the years that 343 Industries seems to have a propensity for going out of their way to not imitateHalo’soriginal creator, Bungie. While this is somewhat admirable in many ways (Bungie did not devote as much attention to the extended lore, for example), this fact has more often than not been a thorn in the side of the 343 era ofHalo.This can most easily be seen in 343’s art, UI design, music, narrative design, atmosphere, and more, where theydeliberately choose to do things differently than Bungie(though over the years they’ve softened in some areas).
More troubling, however, is how this mentality has influenced the overall franchise direction from one that celebrated its community, to one that is constantly at odds with it. It has been proven continually over the past decade, in which 343 has slowly reincorporated elements of the Bungie era back into the franchise overtime afterHalo 4’smassive departure. Perhaps biting the bullet and taking the series back to its roots beyond the superficial sense is what’s needed in the eyes of many fans.
