Halo's Former Franchise Creative Director Sees 3 Possible Paths for Activision's Halo

Frank O'Connor, Halo's Franchise Creative Director for nearly 20 years at 343 Industries/Halo Studios, has weighed in on Halo's future at Activision, suggesting three viable paths forward for Xbox's former biggest franchise. O'Connor, who moved on from 343 Industries in 2023, was responding to a post on LinkedIn by former Xbox Social Media Manager of Executive Communications Genevieve Harrison about Halo's move to Activision.

Harrison discussed how Activision might approach Halo, noting that while "Talent is not a SharePoint folder you drag from /Call of Duty into /Halo," Activision has operational discipline that Halo might need. O'Connor, who started on the Halo franchise when he left Official Xbox Magazine to join Bungie during Halo 2's development, replied with his thoughts on how the series' next step at its new developer and publisher might go.

"There are 3 paths - any one of which COULD be successful," he said. "None of these are easy, guaranteed or necessarily viable:

1. Make a "classic" Halo movement/sandbox/shooter experience tailored to a core audience & scaled to be successful with that core audience and attractive to a broader one so it can grow (not to mention obvious fact that Halo MP is better w. more people playing, by mathematical default).

2. Make something new, modern that the game/universe in a surprising but fantastic way. An action/sandbox game (maybe it's a new take on the FPS, maybe it's an action RPG but it's fundamentally different) and succeeds with a combination of strong story, IP use and gets a small head start based on curiosity or loyalty.

3. Translate Halo IP and sandbox into the ATVI comfort zone. Use the player, progression and business models that are proven to work and craft a big annual or semi-annual spectacle and constant content. Pro-Tip: Do NOT tie it to hardware/services launch cycles, do not try to force it into a shape (or aging platform) that it can't fit and do NOT abandon sandbox. Pro-Pro-Tip: Hire Bungie, Halo Studios and other laid off folk who are bursting w. talent and ideas that got nerfed or shut down over the years."