Halo has been floundering for a few years now, something that developers 343 Industries have openly admitted to themselves. After the disappointing Halo 5: Guardians, it became clear that the series was in need of a reinvention if it was to stay relevant- or at least as relevant as it once used to be. And according to 343 Industries chief Bonnie Ross, that is exactly what the upcoming Halo Infinite will be doing.
Speaking to IGN, Ross said that the studio is looking at the upcoming shooter as a “spiritual reboot’. “We’re kind of calling it a ‘spiritual reboot,” she said. “That’s kind of how we talk about it.” Ross then went on to talk about how when the development on the project began, the team took a step back to examine what Halo meant to them, and where, in light of that, they felt the series needs to be headed.
“There has been a lot of introspective time to really reflect on what [we have] done as 343,” she said. “Where have we made mistakes? Where have we hit it right? What does Halo mean to all of us? That [Halo Infinite reveal] trailer we did is what Halo means to the studio. Maybe it took us two games to get there, and I think we’ve done good things and bad things, but what does Halo mean to us? It is about hope, and wonder, and heroism, and humanity, and community, and bringing a community together. That’s what that trailer is, and that’s what we want to do.”
It’s pretty clear that 343 Industries are certainly looking to take the series into a new direction. On top of creating a completely new engine on which to build the game on, recent reports have also suggested that the game might include RPG elements and player choice in the story.
Halo Infinite is currently without a release date, but if rumours are anything to go by, it will be confirmed as a launch title for the next Xbox at E3 this year. Read more on that through here.