- Primary Subject: Saving the Halo franchise
- Key Update: Activision is now in charge of the Halo franchise after Microsoft restructuring.
- Status: Analysis
- Last Verified: 2026-09-24
- Quick Answer: Check out five key strategies Activision should implement to revitalize the Halo franchise, focusing on distinct gameplay, storytelling, and core mechanics.
There’s no going back now: Halo is in the hands of Activision following more internal restructuring at Microsoft that saw almost 300 jobs cut from Halo Studios, which will now operate as a small supporting development team.
Despite my personal disinterest in whatever happens with Halo next, I can’t deny that part of me is curious to see how Activision will whip the franchise back into shape—or at least try to.
Five Things Activision Needs to Focus on to Save Halo
There are many paths the studio can take to recover the lost pedigree that the Halo name commanded in the mid-2000s. Considering that Activision houses several teams with plenty of FPS expertise after decades of figuring out how to keep the Call of Duty IP fresh (for better or worse), I guess there’s no better studio to take a crack at it.
That’s led me to wonder: what could Activision do to try and save Halo?
Make It Incredibly Distinct From Call of Duty
It may sound painfully obvious, but now that Activision has both CoD and Halo under its control, it’s the perfect time to make Halo play like a true arena shooter rather than a modern military FPS.
For the past few years, 343 Industries and Halo Studios struggled to modernize the franchise, often mimicking the fast-paced gameplay of Call of Duty and forcing it into the Halo universe. More often than not, it sucked the soul out of Bungie’s creation, making it feel no different than a run-of-the-mill yearly CoD release. It goes beyond adding things like sprint or ADS: map design changed, and the time-to-kill (TTK) became much faster, leaving zero room for tactical outplays.
I’m not saying Activision should use the franchise as a sandbox for wild experiments, but it’s the perfect opportunity for teams that have worked on a single IP for all these years to flex their creative muscles in a different context.
Strong Storytelling & a Focused Campaign
I hated Halo 5. It was a half-baked attempt at deepening the lore of the franchise that required a mountain of backstory from outside the games.
There’s a reason the expanded universe from books, spin-off games, and other media barely tied into the mainline stories—they were meant as a fun bonus for hardcore fans to immerse themselves in the world of the UNSC, the Covenant, and the Forerunners. They were never supposed to be mandatory reading.
The massive narrative pivot in Halo Infinite made the whole mess feel even more pointless. It was a soft reboot that awkwardly refused to let go of its puzzling narrative choices—like turning Cortana into a universal threat, only to destroy her offscreen and introduce a brand-new rogue's gallery completely disconnected from what was set up before.
Oh, and Fireteam Osiris? The squad that had half of Halo 5’s marketing dedicated to them and served as your playable characters for most of the campaign? In Infinite, the only acknowledgment they got was Locke’s helmet used as a trophy by a brute.
There’s a high likelihood we’ll see a straight-up reboot next, which would sting. But at the end of the day, if it leads to a strong, concise, and fresh story in the Halo universe, I’m down for it.
Keep It Simple, But Unique
At its core, Halo has always been defined by the holy trinity: melee, grenades, and satisfying gunplay. That’s all it ever needs.
Every time developers tried to reinvent the wheel, it didn't age well. Remember Halo: Reach’s Armor Lock? Halo 4’s CoD-like Ordnance Drops and custom loadouts? They were awful, and the community loathed them. At least Halo 5 evened the playing field by making mechanics like sprint, thrusters, and stabilization universal, but it still leaned too far away from Halo’s core identity.
Please, Activision, just keep it tidy. Modernize it where the formula genuinely needs a shake-up, but don’t deviate too much from the soul that made Halo beloved in the first place.
A Complete Multiplayer & Creation Suite From Day One
Can you believe it took 343 Industries a whole year to add Forge to Halo Infinite? More egregiously, it also took an entire year to add online co-op. Split-screen? Buddy, that was cancelled entirely.
One of my fondest memories of Halo was staying up until 5:00 AM with friends trying to build chaotic racing circuits on maps like Sandbox or Standoff, then testing them out in a Mongoose pile-up.
Halo 5 had an incredible creator community that churned out amazing custom games. I spent dozens of hours during the pandemic running obstacle courses, playing mazes with giant Mantises trying to squash us, and diving into casual modes that gave the game immense long-term value.
Proper, Sustained Live-Service Support
Make them meaningful and don’t drip-feed content. I don’t want to see a mega Forge update six months to a year from launch. That’s the type of content you need to have right from the get-go. Battle passes need to have meaningful content that ties into several modes you’ll get to enjoy.
It sucks that grinding in-game unlockables will now be centered on battle passes rather than accomplishments, but at least make them worth grinding for. Work on post-launch content that also includes a constant, steady flow of new maps, modes, and tools to help Forge creators make even cooler content.
Have seasonal events that incentivize players to come back. Imagine an Infection takeover around October to celebrate Halloween? The possibilities could be endless.
I am deeply wary after years of overall mediocre projects, but there’s no denying that the way you get lifelong fans back on the hype train is by getting these foundational features right out of the gate.
And that’s it. Stick with us at Gfinityesports.com: your go-to source for all things Halo.