The Halo franchise is an iconic relic of gaming history due for a revitalization. Once the king of online multiplayer shooters, Xboxās flagship sci-fi FPS is limping into the next console generation. The series has been faltering ever since creator Bungie handed the titleās developmental reigns over to 343 Industries after 2010ās Halo: Reach and moved to Activision to work on Ā Destiny. While 343 proved itself with Halo 4, Ā 2015ās disappointing Halo 5: Guardians stripped the series of some of its luster and it hasnāt been able to get it back.
343ās inability to escape from Bungieās shadow places the upcoming Halo Infinite in a precarious position and the developers are trying to hedge their bets. According to an interview with GameIndustry.Biz, 343 Industriesā head of transmedia and entertainment Kiki Wolfkill is using alternative media avenues to keep the Halo IP active and relevant. The goal is to simultaneously maintain investment from hardcore fans and attract new players to the franchise before Halo Infiniteās releases via projects like Showtimeās upcoming Steven Spielberg-produced live-action Halo TV series.
āThatās a huge challenge for any IP, even wider entertainment franchises,ā Wolfkill told GameIndustry.Biz. āPart of why thereās been that span of time between Halo 5 and Infinite is the retooling of the infrastructure to give us the flexibility to do whatever we wanted with that game. But itās also about setting off the next generation of Halo. We want people to be able to come into Halo Infinite who may not have played any other Halo game before. At the same time, part of what my role is and my goal with the transmedia pieces is, how do we start to engage new audiences and bring people into the universe so that when Infinite comes out, maybe people who havenāt played before are interested in playing.ā
343ās past transmedia efforts have been a practice of trial and error. Successes like the Hunt the Truth podcast were offset by a misfire like the film Halo: Nightfall. Wolfkill said the company learned from its mistakes.
āHunt the Truth felt successful because it was a suspenseful story on its own and led into Halo 5,ā Wolfkill told GameIndustry.Biz. āBut some of the other pieces were so carefully constructed to attach to the story of the game that, even though we said they were enjoyable standalone pieces, it really felt like you had to ingest it all at the same time. It didnāt feel very approachable for people new to the franchise, which was already a struggle with a game called Halo 5.
Wolfkill wants Halo to feel like a living breathing universe in the vein of Game of Thrones, Star Wars, Star Trek, or Lord of the Rings, but that also requires the franchise to succeed as a game. Nearly a decade has passed since a Halo title chugged a Mountain Dew, lifted a hefty gravity hammer, and swatted a plasma grenade wielding grunt out of the park to thunderous critical applause. With Sony operating its own movie studio via PlayStation Productions, Microsoft needs its best prize-fighting Spartan in peak condition to sell the next Xbox.
Halo 5 and, to a lesser extent, Halo 4 underwhelmed because they werenāt separate enough from Bungieās beloved games. Halo 4ās story was nearly nonsensical if you didnāt study the lore and Halo 5ās ineffectual iron sights mechanic were a half-hearted attempt to modernize the game. Master Chiefās latest campaigns didnāt stand alone from prior installments. But Halo Infinite provides another opportunity for 343 to step out from Bungieās shadow and revive the franchise by bringing it to a broader audience.
Published: Jun 4, 2019 02:26 pm