I’m hearing people say it’s the worst halo showing ever and I’m sitting here thinking that no one remembers the halo 2 demos basically set showfloor computers on fire if you deviated a foot from the demo path
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Isn’t that a bit too harsh? Assuming the studio head is responsible for what I think it is she managed to deliver 2 very big AAA projects in the expected time and budget, and coordinated multiple teams to also get MCC on time, which was no easy task (see Nathan Drake collection that didn’t even tried to bring the multiplayer together and also had way less significant upgrades to the base games)
Not to say there wasn’t quality issues with them but I’m not sure if it would be her responsibility.
And even then, there was covid, which delayed other projects. Hard to say it was her fault even now.
Tlou 2 had the same time as Halo Infinite and they scrapped the multiplayer completely from that one.
Of course Halo Infinite’s scope is gigantic. It’s an AAA single player campaign, aiming for a perfect 60fps, despite being more open areas than previous games, with online co-op and split screen on top of that.
Even the SP alone would be a bigger scope than most SP AAAs, and then there’s the multiplayer.
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Thank you for saying this Jon. I constantly find myself amazed at how tone deaf some people can be; calling 343 a failure of a studio, or attributing it to Bonnie (a genuinely awesome person who loves her craft and Halo, and does a ton of great work for STEM and women in coding), is such a reality-dismissing stance. Halo is akin to Star Wars in having one of the simultaneously greatest, and worst, fanbase and ignoring the massive sales and critical success that 343’s Halo projects have had is disingenuous at best. Additionally, regardless of its launch state MCC was easily the most ambitious project of any recent anthology/remaster/remake that I can think of off the top of my head, and 343 has gone above and beyond to repair the title and enhance it beyond even their highest promises. I will criticize them when there is a legitimate case to, but these blanket statements of vitriol that disregard reality don’t do anything constructively and negate any other semi-valid points you may have.
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This a glassdoor review? if so, not exactly the most reliable…
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A lot of the negative reviews mention similar issues. That was just the most detailed.
But I’m waiting for that Bloomberg article to come out.
Yep, I’d much rather trust Jason and his reporting then disgruntled exemployees.
Again, not saying these can’t be true/accurate, but I take them with a very large grain of salt. I have zero doubt Halo Infinite has had development issues. I mean hell, it’s a staple for the franchise. I think every single Halo game has had problems in development.
I’ve worked with several 343 employees for maps in Halo 5’s matchmaking - they love the franchise and the community. They are just as bummed to let everyone down as we are in being disappointed in the delay.
But, you know where I’d perhaps agree with some folks in this thread about how the studio is managed?
If it wasn’t delayed and rushed out the door. That would be poor leadership.
Instead, they’ve made the right call for the team, the studio, the game and for Halo fans everywhere. It’ll be ready, when it’s ready.
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Not having a Halo game at launch when it was promised takes a lot of guts
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Calling for Bonnies head, lol. Nobody here knows what goes down inside of 343. Maybe it would be worse without her?
Yeah, people seem to forget the ending of Halo 2 where multiple levels were cut or the shitstorm Halo 3 got for 640p or the hate for Reachs multiplayer or level reuse in campaign, firefight and multi.
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There have been tons of rumors of issues within 343. They will be judged, and rightfully so, when Infinite is released sometime next year. If smart, they will lengthen the delay to add the RTX capability into the first revision that is released
Otherwise, the Internet can be a very, very cruel place for creative folks
I’d rather have a much better game later than an unpolished rushed project by launch.
My backlog and I can wait.
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They did the right thing tbh, and I really respect them for that because I know this was a hard decision for MS. 343 were in such a tough position and I don’t think anyone can envy them. At least they have a bit of breathing room now, take their time I can wait. Hope all goes well for them.
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I don’t think calling for people jobs be changed is called for especially given the circumstances. That being said I do think Matt Booty and the senior leaders need to do a review of 343i, they’ve had 2 very divisive games in 4 & 5, where the campaign’s were less than stellar but the multiplayer was sublime. Something isn’t adding up for me, granted it was a brand new team still acclimating and learning.
They absolutely need to get the team to top tier levels, they going to be leading the other teams by example. At this rate Obsidian, Initiative etc will end up being the golden children for XGS. I still have faith 343i can deliver on Infinite.
I disagree on you saying the campaigns were less than stellar. I love the campaign in 4, probably more than I like 2. And while 5 is irritating at times with warden eternal I liked a lot of the choices they made. I kinda liked the expansion of the story beyond one hero character.
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Don’t get me wrong they were good, just not great or approaching the levels they could have reached (in my opinion). I feel like Infinite can finally do the series justice.
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K, I may have read your comment as more negative than you meant
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As someone who ranks the classic Bungie Halo’s as my top games of all time and have been very critical of 343 in the past, there’s a few things to keep perspective of with the studio:
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Bonnie pitched to keep Microsoft going with Halo. Microsoft execs didn’t have plans of what they were going to do with the IP at the time Bungie was leaving. Check Bonnie’s interview with IGN’s Ryan McCaffrey for more context.
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343 was a start up studio taking on an established mega franchise.
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343’s initial idea was to bring in a lot of people who didn’t like Halo in hopes that this would provide a push to evolve the franchise. This backfired considerably. When the entire foundation of a large studio was built on a premise that now needed a 180, there will be turbulence in course correction.
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343 was also built under the Windows division who offered less creative freedom than they’ve had since 2018. Much of their culture was built around a different Xbox division. Their new peers don’t have to contend with that.
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Their engine rebuild absorbed much of the development cycle. This leaves a limited window to capitalize on it.
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All the top creative leads under Bonnie Ross have turned over since Halo 5. This will create turbulence even in the most stable organizations because many employees will be resistant to change. For those of you asking for change due to past results, change already happened.
My point isn’t to make excuses for 343 or even declare everything will be great. When looking at the facts however, we should realize that in addition to Covid, there were a lot of transitional challenges. There are new leads. A new engine. Now they have time to put their stamp on it. I’m not sure that a 2020 release would’ve allowed that. You don’t have to be an apologist to have human empathy, realize that the makeup of the team is different and therefore be willing to give them a chance. Game will be judged on it’s merits when it releases. Hopefully the community can reduce the toxicity until then.
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I am confident that 343i will deliver a stellar Halo in about 14-15 months from now.
If for anything, because MS knows how important the game is and can’t have it fudged up. They’ll move Heaven and Earth to make it a stellar must have game and they’re not going to push it out broken or a mess and just fix it later, they know how important that first impression is.
On the plus side, we’ll likely get a public flighting and more important they can get that ray tracing update ready for launch.
Infinite’s delay is the best news I’ve heard in quite some time
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they’re not delaying a campaign that has been content complete for months for 14-15 months. They delayed it to finish the graphics and get all the MP modes done right. 3-6 months at most in my opinion.
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