Rumours have it that Halo is coming to PlayStation one day, whether it be the current games likeHalo: The Master Chief Collection/Halo: Infinite, or the future titles following 343 Industries rebrand.
If you’ve taken a break from Halo for a while I’d recommend jumping back intoHalo: Infinite, there’s some good stuff in there now following its rocky launch
Halo was originally intended to be a game for Macs. With the project nameBlam!It was a sci-fi third-person shooter about a big green dude fighting aliens. Of course the finished product,Halo: Combat Evolved, was launched on Xbox and PC, and was a sci-fi first-person shooter about a big green dude fighting aliens.
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It was a huge success, and the cultural impact is arguablythereason Xbox is the titan of gaming it is today. WhileHalo 2was a little rougher due to a challenging development cycle, it was even more successful than the first, and the grand-finaleHalo 3eclipsed both of the previous games combined in sales.
No wonder the franchise is undergoing a rebrand, and presumably a full-on reboot as the new screenshots and teaser suggest the next Halo game will be a remake ofHalo: Combat Evolvedrather than a continuation of the story up to now.
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While the rebrand does inspire hope for the future, it’s also telling of the current state of Xbox, especially if the company is indeed making Halo available on PlayStation 5 consoles.
Now again I’m all for Halo on PlayStation. I want as many people as possible to experience these games, and if the older titles become available it only makes sense to have future titles as day one launches on Sony’s platform as well. However as such a huge fan of the series and being there at its peak, it still makes me sad to see just how far it’s fallen, and the desperate plays Xbox is having to make to bring it back.
Xbox Game Studios
Years ago the thought of playing Halo on a PlayStation console would be inconceivable, laughable even, this istheXbox IP it’d have no place on a Sony console. But after so many missteps, it’s clear the series cannot thrive on Xbox and PC exclusively anymore. It’s not just Halo’s reputation either, Xbox in general has been struggling to keep players on board. The PlayStation is leagues ahead of the Xbox Series X/S, especially since Microsoft’s last console was the lacklustre Xbox One.
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It’s not all doom and gloom as Xbox Game Pass continues to be a win for the company, and there are still plenty of IPs to play with especially following the acquisitions of Bethesda and Activision Blizzard. The problem is time, there just isn’t enough of it to make such a quick and decisive difference. I’m sure Xbox would love to throw every Call of Duty game on Xbox Game Pass, or greenlight a brand-new Spyro and Crash Bandicoot game to compete with PlayStation’s Astro Bot, but these projects take time and they’re the greatest console sellers.
Rebranding Halo though is a smart decision, as is making it accessible on more platforms. If done correctly it’ll hopefully revive the brand, as well as be a huge win for Xbox Game Studios when it’s in dire need of one.
Here’s hoping that everything Xbox has in mind goes to plan, especially if you’re a Halo fan. It’s just a shame that such drastic action has had to be taken to restore the IP, and Xbox’ reputation to its former glory. Xbox has always marketed itself as putting the players first, which this move is indicative of, though some of its recent decisions could be perceived as pure desperation rather than a passion for gamers’ enjoyment.
Topics:Xbox,Xbox Series S,Xbox Series X,PlayStation,PlayStation 5,Halo
