Former 343 Industries QA Blames Microsoft Policies For Poor Xbox Exclusives

Microsoft is in an interesting spot. We know that the company is still striving to make some big moves. However, some issues could be addressed now to help the company. One of the biggest hurdles developers face is some of Microsoft’s policies, according to a former Xbox developer at 343 Industries.

Thanks to MP1st, we’re getting insight into a comment made by a former developer at 343 Industries. The comment came from a video on YouTube detailing Halo Infinite and where it might not have hit the strides fans were hopeful of seeing. In the video comment section, a former 343 Industries QA Tester, reported to be Briggs William Crane, noted that some of these issues were caused by Microsoft’s tendency to remove staff.

Ex 343 Dev here. Now I work at Epic Games. Microsoft’s contracting policies are single handedly one of the biggest issues that Halo faces. Can you imagine how difficult it is to do your best work knowing that they’ll get rid of you in 18 months and there’s nothing you can do about it? Plus that forces people out the door just as they become fully trained and competent at their positions. All of this just so they can have the luxury of being able to easily lay off employees when it suits Microsoft execs. A SIGNIFICANT portion of 343’s workforce is comprised of contract workers (including the entirety of the old MCC team). The self inflicted brain drain is maddening to watch, and it’s (in my opinion) why most Microsoft exclusive titles are seeing a downturn in quality. They’ve created a business environment in which the talent they should be trying to cultivate is being pushed out the door and is then nabbed by other studios. – BriggsIGuess

You can read the full quote above, but it essentially notes that most staff who were hired face the reality of being removed from the company once the project is finished. The former employee goes on to say that Microsoft has the luxury of being able to lay off employees whenever it suits the executives, and a large part of the workforce within 343 Industries was made up of contract workers. According to the developer, this is also why they believe Microsoft’s line of Xbox exclusives is seeing a downturn in quality.

In other news regarding Xbox’s Halo franchise, it was recently unveiled that Microsoft is already making big plans. In 2026, the franchise will celebrate its 25th anniversary, and that would be a special celebration. But we’ll have to get through the next calendar year before we find out what Xbox has in store for Halo fans.