Revitalizing the Halo Franchise: Why a Fresh Start Is Long Overdue

Highlights

Halo's reputation as one of the best shooters has been overshadowed by its competition, creating uncertainty for the franchise's future.

Halo's popularity remained strong throughout the Xbox 360 generation despite facing challenges with Halo 5: Guardians and Halo: Infinite. In order to revive the franchise, Xbox should draw inspiration from Nintendo and PlayStation, who have successfully rejuvenated stale franchises like The Legend of Zelda and God of War by taking a break to rework and innovate. Halo requires a fresh approach to inject new energy into the series.

The Halo franchise has been the cornerstone of Xbox for over twenty years. It has consistently been the flagship exclusive, with new titles releasing for every Xbox console. Just like Mario and Kratos are synonymous with Nintendo and PlayStation, Master Chief is synonymous with Microsoft's Xbox brand.

Unfortunately, the reputation of the Halo series has suffered in recent years. While it was once considered one of the best shooters on the market, it has been overshadowed by its competitors. Halo: Infinite, the most recent entry, was not terrible, but its troubled production and mixed reception have raised concerns about the franchise's future. Another Halo game is inevitable, but Microsoft and 343 Industries should seriously contemplate starting from scratch for a future installment.

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Bringing Halo Back To Its Former Glory

Once upon a time, the Halo series dominated the gaming industry, firmly establishing itself as a powerhouse. While GoldenEye on N64 paved the way for console first-person shooters to be taken seriously, it was Halo: Combat Evolved that burst through the doors and captivated the world. Building upon its success, Halo 2 further intensified the excitement in 2004, a fervor that carried over to Halo 3 in 2007.

Halo Should Take a Page From the Competition's Books

Continuing its popularity into the Xbox 360 era, the series saw successful releases like Halo 3: ODST and Halo: Reach, which have since become beloved among fans. However, when the franchise ventured onto the Xbox One with Halo 5: Guardians, it faced division among fans due to numerous reasons. These issues persisted with Halo: Infinite, as the game experienced delays and multiple performance bugs, despite being initially positioned as the flagship launch title for the Xbox Series X.

No matter how amazing a franchise may seem, its reign is always temporary. Sooner or later, a formula becomes stale and in need of a revitalizing touch to infuse fresh energy into the series. This phenomenon even affects the most renowned titles, such as Xbox, who could derive valuable lessons by observing how Nintendo and PlayStation handled their properties in recent years. In the case of Skyward Sword, it was considered a roadblock for the era of 3D-style The Legend of Zelda games, prompting the studio to take a significant hiatus, during which they reimagined the upcoming installment as a fully immersive open-world adventure, resulting in the groundbreaking Breath of the Wild.

The release of God of War: Ascension suggested that the series was lacking innovation. PlayStation decided to reboot the franchise and took inspiration from The Last of Us. Halo: Infinite attempted to go back to its roots by featuring the iconic Halo ring from the original game, but this return to basics seemed repetitive compared to other shooter franchises making advancements.

The Halo series has numerous possibilities to rejuvenate itself. It can draw inspiration from other games, similar to how God of War incorporated elements from The Last of Us. Alternatively, it could introduce unexpected gameplay twists to keep players engaged. The future of Halo remains uncertain, but as seen in gaming history, sometimes a fresh approach is needed, as Master Chief's armor is starting to show signs of wear.

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