Jez Corden has debunked a big rumor that spread around yesterday.
We reported on a very detailed rumor from Bathrobe Spartan on Twitter yesterday. The rumor seemed credible, because it matched up a lot of things that we had previously heard about goings on behind the scenes at 343 Industries.
We do know that 343 Industries saw layoffs and high profile resignations over the last year, and rumors started spreading around that the studio had mainly become a ‘franchise coordinator’, and was no longer actively making Halo games. We’ll get back to this rumor later.
Microsoft has actively debunked these rumors over 2023. Last January, 343 Industries directly stated that they would continue to develop Halo, including making new Halo games. In June of last year, Matt Booty reiterated this claim. He clarified that if other studios were to make new Halo games, that would be initiated within 343 Industries, and not by Xbox or Microsoft Gaming higher ups.
And now we’re seeing these new rumors, with very specific claims. Bathrobe Spartan stated most of the 300 employees left at 343 Industries after last year’s layoffs are not developers, but work at the business side. And this is where we get the clear debunking.
Jez Corden went on Twitter to directly address these claims:
“checked into latest xbox rumor going around that “343i isn’t going to develop halo games” and instead only “oversee” them: false af in case you believed it.
studio has hundreds of employees and loads of open positions T-T. pretty big team if all you’re doing is overseeing.”
Don’t forget, Jez Corden is a trusted source, over someone like Bathrobe Spartan, and not just because he’s a public figure. Jez has actually met people in Microsoft and Xbox, and we know he has connections in the company as well. He has shared rumors and teasers himself, and its known that he won’t be irresponsible, to protect his sources, and also to protect those relationships.
But here’s what you probably didn’t know, or more accurately, didn’t remember. The original rumor that 343 would no longer make Halo games last year also came from Bathrobe Spartan. This rumor had persisted for longer than it deserved, and even if we don’t really know who Bathrobe Spartan is or how they got their information.
Subsequently, we were wrong not to take Microsoft and 343 Industries at their word. It was perhaps an emotional reaction not to trust them then, because they had just laid off people, and gamers were also unhappy with where Halo Infinite was then, compared to its current state.
It’s certainly ironic that Jez, who doesn’t work for Xbox, has to step in to debunk this rumor, but now we have to acknowledge that this has all been a huge mistake. If there’s no new Halo game that has been announced yet, we should trust 343 and Microsoft at their word on that. It’s clearer now that Microsoft has actually had a lot of games in the pipeline, and simply took too long to make.
If anything, seeing all the games they have revealed in the last two Xbox Games Showcase events, it’s credible to believe that there is one or even several Halo games in development, and 343 are being quiet because they’re in the middle of that work. And it’s highly likely that game or games are now being planned for the next generation of Xbox consoles. Perhaps this round Microsoft will properly position it back as Xbox’s key franchise.
