It’s Time For Halo To Say Goodbye To Master Chief For Good

The Halo franchise has been in a shaky state since it was handed over to 343 Industries, and the only fix may be to move on from the Master Chief

[Lifexline]

Well for a game that has generated 10 billion I doubt Microsoft will say goodbye to Halo or Master Chief. There will be more Halo.

[solideagle]

10 billion is not just games, it also includes merchandise + TV shows etc

As for the article, its tough to replace him. I have only played first 2 games. Sony Santa Monica has done a wonderful job for Kratos, I am not if it can be done for MasterChief? He is a masked guy...

[Lifexline]

It doesn’t matter the point is the brand has brought in that much money to MS most companies are not even worth that much. It’s all because of the games so they will continue is the point. It’s mostly non fans or Sony fanboys wanting it to be dead. Real halo fans would love to get more halo just t needs to get things right.

Although halo infinite the open world was pretty cool they need to go back to it being linear not every game needs to be open world. Make it linear and focus on the multiplayer.

[solideagle]

@Lifexline
"It’s mostly non fans or Sony fanboys wanting it to be dead"

I don't think I ever mentioned that it needs to be dead or it's already deda? I am not a fanboy and would never want any studio/game dead. I am pretty sure big brains at MSFT will figure it out eventually...

[neutralgamer1992]

Microsoft has a dilemma on his hand. They really don’t need message chief anymore since they will soon own COD and over-watch

We can all agree 343 industries did not do justice to halo IP. Right now the best thing to do is to give the series and IP a break and bring it back with the next generation Xbox at launch. I still believe Microsoft made a huge mistake by Mike acquiring bag bungie. When you were throwing around almost $100 billion what is another 3.6 billion and you know for sure that studio will do good

[Obscure_Observer]

"Well for a game that has generated 10 billion I doubt Microsoft will say goodbye to Halo or Master Chief. There will be more Halo."

Indeed. Thankfully, 343i is already developing the next Halo which will be powered by the UE5. Slipspace did a decent job for a crossgen game as Halo Infinite, but, nowadays, it already felt outdated since Infinite has been in development since 2016.

I´m really enjoying this Lone Wolf Master Chief calling the shots. Since Sgt. Johnson´s death, I care very little for UNSC and even less for ONI. Looking forward to the next chapter of his epic adventure with the Weapon and the Pilot on his side.

[jznrpg]

That money was made mostly in the past and made by other media and not just games.
They have severely damaged the Halo IP and it will be interesting to see if they continue that trend , take a break , or can they bring it back which seems very difficult at this point especially with their track record.

Getting rid of Master Chief won’t help and probably hurt the series more would be my guess . A mediocre game will be a mediocre game with it without him.

[Golfcoachh]

I still don't get all the hate, it had great reviews and yet everyone says its a dog, maybe because I don't play online I dont get it. I thought the campaign was very good and enjoyed it thoroughly. 87 metacritic and 7.9 user score. If you read comments on N4G you would think it was a total dog.

[Lifexline]

Yeah I agree it was a fun game overall I feel most people who think it's shit are people who are just going by what the internet says. i just feel like they tried to do too much with it and you can tell by playing the game they overstretched themselves. They need to go back to basics and make the campaign linear and focus on variety and story. But it's a good game is it great no it's not but still good and fun.

It was a fun game the gameplay is always fun for me the lack of variety as far as setting was it's downfall. Yes the multiplayer lacked content but it's still fun which is why it's still very active. They just tried to do too much and need to focus and cut back. Look at call of duty it's campaign is always linear and it's super successful they need to take notice and go back to being linear. What makes Halo fun for me is it's variety as far as weapons and vehicles.

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

Are we talking about Infinite? My understanding was that the multiplayer was pretty terrible, and deprived of content, I bailed out early on in the second season.

[EvertonFC]

9.8b of that being the 360 era profits ?

[jambola]

Of course real halo fans would agree with you
Because you can call anyone who disagrees " not a real fan"
Some circular bs there

[IamTylerDurden1]

That won't happen nor should it. Chief is Xbox. He built Xbox. It's not a chief problem it's a 343 problem. The last 2 games didn't meet the Halo standard, that's it.

[BandarHub]

Non-Halo fans need to keep their mouths shut and keep their rubbish opinions to themselves.
Master Cheif's character is pivotal to the story of Halo. There is a reason why his name is John and goes by 117.
Master Chief's character has been explored really well by 343i who do not get credit for their work. They don't go overboard with his character by undermining him and making him cry.

[SullysCigar]

How about those that were once Halo fans, but then fell out of love with it after 343i ruined it?
Are they allowed to speak?

[BandarHub]

Ruined it? I don't see anything ruined. I see missteps with story and style directions other than that the Halo experience for the regular player is the same.
Halo Infinite Multiplayer is the most perfect blend of both worlds. Halo Infinite story rectifies the direction Halo 5 took with its created. Now the story revolves around the mystery of Zeta Halo and if you know Zeta Halo you know very well what resides on that Ring.

Those people who are speaking do not know Halo well enough to be giving an opinion. Halo is not a game that you reboot...rebooting in their sense means changing and if you know Halo you do not change things. Rebooting the story would mean undoing all the lore that it took to build the universe of Halo.
This is why people who know nothing about Halo need to step aside when it comes to discussing its future.

[SullysCigar]

^ I disagree, @Bandarhub, everyone has a right to their opinion, not just the ultra nerds that sit there soaking up the comics, the TV series, the fanfic and all that.

Halo suffered in the same way as Resistance and Killzone in that, once they'd nailed it, future iterations always seemed to miss at least one vital aspect of what made the formula work so well. The difference is, those franchises recognised when a break was needed, which has stopped people from feeling burnt out on them and has peope currently clamouring for a reboot/remake of either or both.

Halo has slowly dwindled from being the main event and is now dangerously close to feeling like a non-event. they need to rest it and then it needs a reboot. That's my opinion.

[BandarHub]

"^ I disagree, @Bandarhub, everyone has a right to their opinion, not just the ultra nerds that sit there soaking up the comics, the TV series, the fanfic and all that."
Don't come onto a gaming message board and call people ultra nerds...we are all ultra nerds

"Halo suffered in the same way as Resistance and Killzone in that, once they'd nailed it, future iterations always seemed to miss at least one vital aspect of what made the formula work so well. The difference is, those franchises recognised when a break was needed, which has stopped people from feeling burnt out on them and has peope currently clamouring for a reboot/remake of either or both."

Those games failed to kick off at the apex of the fps craze. Resistance only found its true identity in its third game but that game was not successful. Killzone's very existence is based upon lies and its greatest claim to fame is the fake demo that they presented.
Halo Infinite is the accumulation of Halo Fans feedback.

The most important thing that Halo and those other games did not foster a dedicated community. And for years even before Bungie delivered their last game 343i has been developing lore to build the foundation.

No Halo fan wants a reboot of the series that's crazy. That goes against the very fanbase and listen to outside dopey opinions from activist Jorno.

"Halo has slowly dwindled from being the main event and is now dangerously close to feeling like a non-event. they need to rest it and then it needs a reboot. That's my opinion."

Its very easy to deflate that argument. Halo has stayed true to its formulae which is long time to kill which encourages fair play, map knowledge and power weapons. This is the essence of Halo. Modern gaming with COD leading the front has been Twitch shooting with fast kill time. All modern games follow that template and for Halo to follow that idea is a betrayal to what makes Halo...Halo.
This is why Halo does not have the same number of players playing it has it did back in the 2000s, modern gaming has changed and people go with the latest trend.

[Hofstaderman]

@Bandarhub three games worth of missteps? You may not believe this, but I love Halo, albeit Bungie Halo. Microsoft needs to space them and appoint a more competent development house.

[Obscure_Observer]

"How about those that were once Halo fans, but then fell out of love with it after 343i ruined it?"

They better move on with their lives, don´t you think? 343i is going nowhere as you already know and Bungie is not coming back for obvious reasons.

So what´s the point of you been here bitching and crying ad nauseam about the Halo of the old that will never come back. Seems pointless to me. Such a waste of time and energy.

But hey, you´re allowed to speak your mind if makes you feel better.

[SullysCigar]

^ Context is important, @Bandarhub, we all have our areas of ultra nerdery, but my point was that you can't discount the opinions of less fanatical, more casual gamers that enjoyed the older Halo games and didn't enjoy the newer ones as much.

Try not to get bogged down in attacking Resistance and Killzone as a defence of Halo's current predicament. To suggest people wouldn't like to see those franchises return is way off the pulse. And that hankering is because they knew when to rest those titles and avoid burn out. The best part is that both of the studios behind those games were allowed to spread their wings and have flown HIGH as a result, rather than festering in their own boredom, like 343i presumably have, judging by their output over the same period.

[IceKoldKilla]

@Obscure_Observer Wow, he simply asked if his opinion is allowed despite not being a super fan still and you tell him to stop bitching and moaning yet guess who's doing that just now? You're generalizing and bitching about a fanbase that is still a fanbase. They love the franchise and have spent their money. Not even you are entitled to anything Halo. Nobody is as they don't own it. But extreme fans like you ruin games for sure. You will support a multi-billion dollar company no matter what they do. Ever heard of voting with your wallet? I suggest it. Money speaks and if the games have had "missteps" for 3 games then it's clearly not doing as well as it once did and needs a new studio, a break, a reboot or something new as whatever they're doing isn't working. EVEN if a thousand people love the games, numbers don't lie. And as business they need to make money, not less than before but more. It's the goal of all businesses.

[P_Bomb]

“Killzone's very existence is based upon lies and its greatest claim to fame is the fake demo that they presented. ”

🧐 that’s a disagree.

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

I would only call myself a casual Halo fan, but the games really did drop off in quality after Bungie was out of the picture. I would condemn 343i as much as I condemn Square-Enix for the state of modern FF games, just because they make a lack luster game doesn't mean you have to like it or even enjoy it. But I also accept that everything I enjoy will either turn into a former shadow of itself or just fade away (e.g. no new media).

[BehindTheRows]

Show us the non-Halo fans...

"Those people who are speaking do not know Halo well enough to be giving an opinion"

Really? Explain who those people are, then tell us this secret sauce that Halo has the only people like you know about.

[BandarHub]

"Really? Explain who those people are, then tell us this secret sauce that Halo has the only people like you know about."

There is no secret sauce.
There is the fundamental mechanics that makes Halo what it is. In multiplayer its the time to kill, power/map knowledge and weapon balance. Everything synchronises to make Halo a unique and satisfying shooter.
Only people who play Halo know well what makes Halo what it is.

[jznrpg]

It seems his secret is love anything that’s delivered with the name Halo on it.

[IamTylerDurden1]

Bandar loved the top down Halo as well i bet. And Wars was his favorite rts. Loyalty.

[Profchaos]

I kind of disagree cheif is pivotal but not the be all and end all of the halo universe both ODST and reach prove you can still tell a compelling halo story without the cheif and cortana.

Now I may not have read the extended universe novels so in your view I probably don't have a right to talk about what i want from a halo game but I've played every single entry and spin off including things like Spartan assualt on windows phones.

As someone who's seen the changing of hands 343i hasn't done well from a story perspective they intended to start a new trilogy so we got 4/5 then the trilogy idea was seemingly scraped for infinite which was to be expansive and is not getting any more story content after all.

But we got the Loki storyline and the jumbled mess that was 5 the story in infinite was still hitting the same old tropes of Cortana going rouge we've had since the 3rd game started the ai rampancy story beat it's old and played out now.

In a universe as big and lore as expansive as halo has I really don't want another game about ai rampancy again.

Than again maybe I'm just not a true fan.

[BandarHub]

Not Halo Reach. We need more side game like ODST though
Halo Reach told a unique story but it was far from what it should have been. What we got was a side story to the overall story of Reach which was a devastating one. It not that it was a bad story not on the contrary its was a well-told story but if they shifted their focus on what was happening on Reach that would have been so much better.

Let me explain Halo Infinite, Halo Infinite is not one story but a string of stories that will take place on Zeta Halo. Halo Infinite is part 1 of that story. The next game will take place on the other side of the ring and will explore the mysteries of the ring as well as whatever the harbinger activated at the end of the game. There are other things that need to be resolved such as the crashed Unsc infinity, the location of the other spartans.
If you not attune to the extended lore, zeta Halo was a ring that was taken over by flood and lots of crazy stuff happened there. The forerunner experimented with a creature called the primordial which was a precursor.

Zeta halo has many distinct places with it including a place called the Palace of Pain where the by using the flood humans were experimented on by the primordial and Mendicant Bias. Mendicant Bias was a villain in the Halo lore from the terminal and was seeking forgiveness for his sins. He was taken down by the name that was uttered at the end of Halo Infinite as offensive Bias. Zeta Halo has the the parts of Mendicant Bias which I think Master chief or someone else might uncover.

If you want to know more about Halo lore. I suggest reading the forerunner saga books. If not get the Halo Encyclopedia which explains everything in the Halo universe.

So no Halo Infinite's story is not being scrapped. Halo never scrapped stories only improves upon it.

[CoNn3rB]

I'm a Halo fan and for me Chief's story was finished in Halo 3, the covenant and the flood were defeated and Chief was finally allowed to go into cryo and rest. The following two games that came after (ODST and Reach) had different protagonists and both those games are amazing, the universe of Halo is larger than the Master Chief just as the Gears of War universe is bigger than Marcus Fenix.

If a developer cannot take on a franchise without using the "old favourites" as a crutch then they don't deserve it.

[BandarHub]

Yeah...no.
Halo games can create spin-offs but the main Halo game will always be Chief.
343i should be the developer working on mainline Halo but other studios can work on spin offs which is okay with me. But the topic at hand was saying goodbye to master Chief he is more that Halo he is an Icon of gaming....you just do not retired something like that.

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

We really could use more games like ODST and Reach, personally Reach was fantastic and by far my favourite Halo game. They could easily make more side games like Reach without involving Master Chief, in fact, I think those games prove that a Halo game without him is easily workable and can be really good.

I agree, there isn't much more we can do with Master Chief, so far, they've just constantly defrosted him for another game when it isn't necessary, not even gaming icon/mascot can be Mario, Sonic, Kratos, Sackboy or Crash Bandicoot. Even long running games like Uncharted's Nathan Drake had to retire at some point, we could reboot Halo and Master Chief, but I'd rather new characters and conflicts set in that world.

[jambola]

No they don't
Toxic angry man children like you should consider that though

[Ninver]

Lay off the pipe buddy. Halo has been on a steady decline after Reach. That was the last good iteration of the series.

The IP has been handled poorly since and something needs to be done and quickly!

[IamTylerDurden1]

Chief is essential to XB. Unfortunately 343 just isn't Bungie. Likewise The Coalition isn't prime Epic. It's a talent issue not a Chief or Fenix thing as to why those IP have declined.

[BandarHub]

They won't decline into obscurity like Killzone and Resistance because a community is supporting the game. No matter how much infighting there is, the fans care for the franchise.

343i has a lot of dedicated developers and care about Halo, painting them as the villain is unjust. They have had mistakes with Halo 4 Multiplayer and Halo 5 story but the state of Halo Infinite is good right now with a great community behind it.
343i has no bad intentions with Halo they wouldn't have ignored fans critic. THey could have easily bulldoze their ideas in the game but hey didnt.

Gears 5 was a great game and took the series in a better direction than Epic would have.
There are lots of talent are both studios.

[CrimsonWing69]

He’s the best character in the game… what are you going to replace him with? An identical character?

Geezus…

[LucasRuinedChildhood]

Halo Reach and ODST succeeded without him as the main character. I don't trust 343 with or without him though.

[BandarHub]

What do you not trust them him?
343i has given Master Chief more character than Bungie has.

[Hofstaderman]

Oh man I loved Reach. What a fantastic and frenetically charged story. And the ending on the shore…
I still get those feels when I see the Noble Team diorama on my shelf.

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

@Hofstaderman,
Reach is so memorable, I remember it better than some of the events in the first few Halo games, I wish we could have more Halo games like that.

[drizzom]

Of course.

But only female.

[RaidenBlack]

"an epic conclusion and start of a new saga, where Chief is faced with innumerable odds and an unknown female spartan arrives, sharing the same common enemy. Chief sacrifices his life to stop a galactic catastrophe and dies in her arms but the work yet still remains unfinished. And the new spartan must finish the fight "
?

[Hofstaderman]

Raiden. A white-haired combat virgin with unscratched Mjilnor armour.

[RaidenBlack]

"what are you going to replace him with? An identical character?"
This.
What are the other options?
A talkative male spartan?
A female spartan?
Or follow something similar to Arbiter? (But have to stick with the character throughout)

[TheLigX]

What? Master Chief is the only good thing left in Halo.

[lellkay]

It's really not though.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

Chief isn’t the problem….

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

WHO DISAGREES.

[Profchaos]

ODST and reach prove you can tell a compelling story without the cheif.

But then when you try to hard you end up with Loki.

Still I think there's plenty of exciting cheif stories that can still be told.

[Cussing]

The issue is 343. Not Master Chief.

[Tapani]

That's like saying "It's time for Spider-man to say goodbye to Spiderman for good."

[ChasterMies]

Heretic

[ShwaaMan]

Um that would be like God of War saying goodbye to Kratos. Super Mario saying goodbye to Mario.
What?! These characters built these franchises and they are a prime reason we all keep coming back for decades. If you want a new character, make a new universe/game world.
Halos problems have not been because of Master Chief in any way.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

Mario is old news, kids today wanna play Wario 🤗

[Hofstaderman]

They experimented with this in Halo 5. It didn’t sit well with the fan base.

[-Foxtrot]

How did that work out for Agent Locke?

[anast]

It should not be time. This is just letting people that obviously get paid way too much money off the hook. Anyone making this much money should not be mediocre. Find real talent and make a good HALO game.

[shadowT]

RIP Halo, long live Call of Duty.

[isarai]

You people really out here blaming everything BUT the team behind it. The IP either needs to be given to someone else other than 343i or the staff leads need to be swapped for new blood that understands what made the series great.

[Terry_B]

Halo needs a female protagonist now..right? ;)

[Godmars290]

They've wanted too long to move off MC. Failed with Locke. Maybe they could scale things down to some kind of in universe adventure game set during or after the war, put it on the other end of the action, but they've otherwise painted themselves into a corner.

[343_Guilty_Spark]

343i didn’t ruin Chief. Halo 4s Chief was excellent. They made a misstep in Halo 5 by not making him the main character. Halo Infinite’s Chief was great but 343i just didn’t expound much on the character or the story. They left it to audio logs scattered across the map. They don’t need to abandon Chief, they need to double down get Chief some great writers and power the next game using UE5.

[Rhythmattic]

Good Grief !
...Master Grief incoming.

[EvertonFC]

He left after 3 imo, not been the same since the 360 years tbh.

[Eonjay]

This might not be a bad idea. The Halo universe is a lot larger than most think. There are plenty of stories worth telling.

[jambola]

"game has been shaky since new studio took over, best bet is to remove iconic main character"
Lol
Or, crazy thought
Give it to more competent development team who won't take 2 years to release basic things from past games etc

[JokerBoy129]

No, we just need to get rid of 343 and look into diversifying genres of the franchise. We don't need another military fps in space for the 9th time. Give us a horror title in the franchise. Give us a 3rd person action game or hell, they could do a hack n' slash FFS....

[mjchitown]

clownrant

[Tedakin]

How about no. I don't want to play God of War without Kratos or Tomb Raider without Lara Croft either.

[Dwarrior]

I've always said it and I'll say it again:

Franchise should have ended with H3.

[HyperMoused]

Halo is master chief, remember when they made you play as Locke and you were just waiting to be Master chief again.....yeah

[zarbor]

That's a really dumb article. To get rid of Master Chief would be one of the dumbest ideas such as getting rid of commander Shepard in Mass Effect or John Marston in Red Dead. The problem with Halo has very little to do with Master Chief needing to move on. The problem with Halo is MS has proven over and over again, they suck at single player AAA titles. They can't do them because they cannot create an engaging story for their single player games like Halo since its story is not well written.

Additionally, unlike Mass Effect, they refuse to expand the universe to involve a variety of alien races, planets and solar systems. They went all in on the multiplayer and the single player part of he game which is how this series started, is now an after thought. Just like COD, most gamers play this series for it multiplayer. The MP portion of this game has no need for Master Cheif. That's why folks think MS should move on from him. I won't be surprised if there aren't rumblings in MS about such a thing.

I've said it years ago, if MS only had a brain, they would have separated, the SP with Master Chief and the MP that most of the gamers seem to love. I would have given one of the top 3rd party developers such as Bioware (back then), Insomanic, etc. the opportunity to create a AAA Halo game.

[37Anon]

As a Halo super fan since 01 I have been saying this for years.

Master Chief has already saved the universe several times over. There's nothing left for him to do that wouldn't cheapen what he has already done.

The real problem here is that 343 is simply not creative enough to do anything with the story.

Imo they should move forward in time and have the Chief be this mythological figure from the past. Bring in a new gen of Spartans that were formed the same way as Spartan 2s. Instead of having one main character have a team of Spartans like Reach did

[Deathdeliverer]

What if… and this is wayyy out of left field on the theory meter… but what if the reason Microsoft is fighting so hard for Activision is for them to be in charge of Halo? Halo has been on a down hill spiral. What if they (Microsoft) thinks that the call of duty team can bring freshness to, & revive Halo? Totally different games, but Activision has a TON of online mp FPS experience. Don’t get me wrong, they won’t kill COD. But I think they may stop the yearly releases and have one team working on regular Halo releases and one team churning out COD. No longer the alternating years. 🤔🤔🤔
Anyway, I don’t think Halo needs to go away but I do think they need to get away from Master Chief. Make a Halo: Rim or something with a relatable character that’s equally B.A. and introduce some new ideas. Take some risk. And I’m not talking about adding a grappling hook and a dash. Hell, have him be a rogue. Have him fighting Mjolnirs and Covenant (cause I swear they have to be in EVERY game 🙄) and maybe down the line you put Chief in a situation to be forced to work with him in part 2 or 3. I think that’s my issue. The lack of imagination with the series and the rinse/repeat mindset of Microsoft. They are the definition of playing it safe. Hell, have a person navigate a Xbox one then have them navigate a Series X and ask if they can tell which is which without seeing a game running.
Rinse and repeat, play it safe, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.

Link has been in a boat, tied to the past and future, and had to restart the game at the end of every week.

Kratos has been in isometric 3D, Had a kid and moved to an entirely different play style, and now he isn’t even the only playable character.

Metroid went from 2D, to a 3D First person shooter, and now BACK to 2D

PlayStation games are in some if the best VR available

[hiawa23]

Halo is to Xbox which is to Microsoft as peanut butter is to jelly. There will be another Halo, this is simply nonsense. The garbage that is posted on this site. Are there any sites where gamers who may enjoy multiple platforms equally, and not one vs the other toxicity that is posted everyday can go to just get good videogame information and news?

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

I actually wouldn't mind another Halo RTS, but this time... Set in space! ...I don't if Halo has enough ships types for a game like that, I just really want another Conquest Frontier Wars.