With the recent move of Microsoft laying off 10,000 members of their staff in the last few days, 343 Industries appear to have been hit most heavily in the Xbox department at Microsoft. Insider, Bathrobe Spartan who has reported on the news and been correct on matters relating to Halo Infinite in the past produced a lengthy Twitter thread outlining a number of items that have changed at 343 Industries in the last few days.
With regards to the future of Halo Infinite, Spartan noted that 343 Industries is losing around one-third of its workforce in the recent layoffs. These departures have mostly affected the departments of “visual and narrative” creation. Despite this, Spartan said that the layoffs are not set to affect any of 343 Industries’ plans for 2023 and beyond.
All content planned for this year, future seasons, modes, and elements are maintained and are not disrupted… This will include all Halo Infinite-related projects being worked on by 343 Industries & external studios.
Bathrobe Spartan – Insider
With the layoffs to the visual and narrative department, it’s hard to imagine that the story DLC elements that 343 Industries promised players would release after Halo Infinite‘s launch will be of the same quality if they are to release in the current year. However, there hasn’t been any news or updates surrounding story DLC since the game’s launch.
The possibility of story DLC being cut completely from the title is not off the table either. Spartan noted that there were three main reasons for the layoff.
- Microsoft is planning for a possible future recession
- The team itself has a high cost of operation but does not meet the overall financial goals suspected
- They’re aiming for a solely multiplayer-focused Halo Infinite moving forward
Finishing up the post Spartan noted that 343 Industries was not simply going to go away. Instead, he noted that future aims for the Halo series would revolve around a “two-point strategy” where Microsoft “coordinate Halo Infinite follow-up [and] franchise the Halo license to other studios.”
Despite these comments and the previous reliability of the source this all remains speculation at the moment. Halo Infinite certainly has a tough road ahead of it and it’s difficult now to imagine that this title proclaimed itself to be a 10-year live service model back in 2021. Perhaps pushing out the license to other studios may help to reinvigorate the franchise in the future.
