In a status update on the Xbox Australia Facebook page, Microsoft announced that the next Halo title, announced at E3 last year, would indeed be called Halo 5 but followed up to say the post had been made in error.
As part of a series of 14 posts entitled 'Reasons to Buy an Xbox One in 2014' a Microsoft staffer wrote:
"Reason #14 – The Prometheans and Covenant just won’t give John-117 a break! Master Chief returns for the thrilling continuation of the Reclaimer Saga in Halo 5."
However, the post was quickly deleted and the company commented:
"This post was made in error, and we will be updating it shortly. We have made no announcements regarding the name of Halo on Xbox One. As we have stated previously, the award-winning franchise continues on Xbox One, beginning in 2014. We have no further details to share at this time."
The quick reaction by Microsoft suggests that the next Halo will indeed be called Halo 5 but there's no clear reason why somebody at Redmond or 343 Industries simply can't confirm what the name of the game is beyond the industry's usual absurd secrecy requirements.
At E3 343's producer Bonnie Ross took to the Xbox One stage for the reveal trailer which simply labelled the game 'Halo'. Don Mattrick, former president of Xbox, did however refer to the game as Halo 5 while still at Microsoft.
Halo 5, or whatever the game is ultimately called, is part of the Reclaimer Saga which began life as an intended trilogy with Halo 4 but has since expanded. In June last year, a Microsoft representative commented that "While we originally said trilogy, we've actually expanded this to be more of a saga, so we don't want to limit the Reclaimer story within a trilogy."
Microsoft Studios boss Phil Spencer has said the game will be a "legitimate" Halo title. Halo 5 is most likely set for a November release this year but, as with the name of the game, this has yet to be confirmed.
