Activision Says It Wants to Make 'The Greatest Halo Game Ever' as Xbox Hands Franchise to Call of Duty Maker

Xbox announced Tuesday it was passing the reins to the Halo franchise to Activision as part of a wider studio restructuring and cuts at the company. The Call of Duty maker, confirmed to develop the next Halo title, has now said it wants to make “the greatest Halo game ever.”

Announcing a new round of layoffs, Xbox chief content officer Matt Booty confirmed that Activision will develop the next Halo game. Xbox and Activision did not share details about the team working on the project, but said that it would be a “new, purpose-built” team separate from ongoing development and plans for Call of Duty.

At Activision, in-house studios like Infinity War, Treyarch, and Sledgehammer Games develop new Call of Duty titles. The upcoming Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 is being made by Infinity Ward.

In a statement shared with Game File, Activision said it wants to make “the greatest Halo game ever” and confirmed it had begun forming a new team for the project.

“For Halo, our goal is clear: make the greatest Halo game ever, worthy of its universe and legacy, while staying true to what made players love it in the first place,” Activision president Rob Kostich told the publication. “It is a bold ambition, one that this franchise deserves. We have already begun assembling a purpose-built team, unique in capability and talent, ready and excited to deliver this next chapter with the community.”

Rumoured Halo Projects

Xbox has not yet revealed details about the next mainline Halo game. The company has reportedly been working on remakes of Halo 2 and Halo 3, following the release of Halo: Campaign Evolved, a full remake of Halo: Combat Evolved.

In July, Halo Studios also reportedly cancelled a multiplayer Halo project, codenamed “Project Ekur.” Last month, noted Halo insider Rebs Gaming reported that Microsoft was exploring the possibility of Activision developing a new Halo game. One of the proposed Halo projects under Activision could reportedly be a multiplayer Halo title developed by Call of Duty studio Sledgehammer Games.

Additionally, according to that report, Activision had started testing a prototype for a Halo pitch in June. The prototype, said to be in the blockout phase of development with early gameplay mechanics such as player movement being tested, was reportedly cancelled by Microsoft in early July.

It is also unclear if Halo Studios will continue to work on new Halo projects. The studio has lost a significant number of employees as part of the latest round of layoffs. Xbox said a “small team” at Halo Studios will continue supporting the Halo community and other Xbox projects.

Activision is set to launch Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 on PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X, and Nintendo Switch 2 on October 23. More details about the team working on Halo and the next mainline Halo title should likely be revealed at some point. The last mainline Halo game, Halo Infinite, launched on PC and Xbox platforms in 2021.