Let this be a reminder: Bungie is no longer Microsoft's plaything. In an interview with GameIndustry.biz, Community Director Brian Jarrard indicated that once Halo 3 Recon is out the door late next year, the team working on it will move into territory unknown. "But I think when this project wraps up in a couple of months that will be the time when that team moves on to something else, and part of that team will move on to something else and part of them will probably be absorbed into one of the other projects that are already on the way," he said.
Granted, there's a lot of time between now and the Fall 2009 Halo 3 Recon release, so Bungie will be knee-deep in Halo for another year, at least. Provided none of Bungie's other teams tackle the space-loop saga, Microsoft has already assembled a new dream team to keep Halo alive.
[Update: Reworded some of the article to eliminate confusion between Bungie as a whole and the specifically mentioned Halo 3 Recon team.]
Reader Comments (42)
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:49PM Haggard said
I'm guessing aside from the initial contract, most of the people at Bungie just get salaries that aren't likely to change much. So while the executives might love the income of Halo games, the people who actually code them might not see much of it *and* be sick of doing them.
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 3:10PM falcomadol said
Given that in a lot of companies, these artists and scripters would have been given pink slips at the end of Halo 3, I'm willing to be that they're quite happy to have had something to work on for two years between Halo 3 shipping and Recon shipping.
Then they get to move to a new project and continue to work for the current employer. Sounds like paradise to me. Then again, I'm unemployed right now, so almost anything that involves showing up to work and getting paid to do something interesting sounds good.
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Then they get to move to a new project and continue to work for the current employer. Sounds like paradise to me. Then again, I'm unemployed right now, so almost anything that involves showing up to work and getting paid to do something interesting sounds good.
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:04PM (Unverified) said
So there aren't going to be games based on the books? Bummer.
Well I guess is back to Marathon,Rite?
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Well I guess is back to Marathon,Rite?
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:11PM SpacePenguinBot said
I'd love to see another Myth game, but it wouldn't work well on a console. So baring that, I'd like to see a 3rd person action/adventure game.
Either way I want to see a non-FPS Bungie game next. Is that asking too much?
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Either way I want to see a non-FPS Bungie game next. Is that asking too much?
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:06PM (Unverified) said
So what is Recon anyway, an expansion viva DLC, or is it a stand alone game?
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:07PM (Unverified) said
It seems is a stand alone game.
At first I thought it was an expansion.
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At first I thought it was an expansion.
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:08PM SpacePenguinBot said
Yay!
I'm a big fan of Bungie's, and the Halo series has been fun, but it's time to move on. Both from Halo and from Microsoft.
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I'm a big fan of Bungie's, and the Halo series has been fun, but it's time to move on. Both from Halo and from Microsoft.
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:09PM (Unverified) said
Bungie: "Recon is our final Halo project..."
"...until MS pays us a gazillion dollars to produce Halo 4 or Halo Zero for the 720".
Money always trumps passion/desire for a new project.
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"...until MS pays us a gazillion dollars to produce Halo 4 or Halo Zero for the 720".
Money always trumps passion/desire for a new project.
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:13PM SpacePenguinBot said
Would MS really lose that many sales if they paid a different developer a lot less money to make Halo 4?
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:23PM (Unverified) said
Yep, I'd like to have somebody else tackle Halo for a change.It worked with CoD.
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:36PM (Unverified) said
It worked with COD?? ¬_¬...you do realise they swapped for COD3 as in Call of Duty 3!!!!
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:37PM baby sea tuna said
Did it work for CoD? The only non-Infinity Ward CoD I ever played was 3, and it was mediocre at best.
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 4:36PM (Unverified) said
Which is why when CoD4 came out, you guys were so pissed with CoD3, 4 seemed like a Second Gaming of Jesus, despite being a 100% reskin of CoD2.
That's their tactic.Make a decent game that seems crap in comparison to IW CoD so when good IW CoD comes out it will seem even better!
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That's their tactic.Make a decent game that seems crap in comparison to IW CoD so when good IW CoD comes out it will seem even better!
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:33PM Spunky Monkey 190906 said
Bungie = Halo and nothing else as of now, so I can see the logic in this, this is a healthy business move for Bungie, they can't rely on one title if they expect to remain independant and make it in this gaming world with even small devs spitting out 3 or four titles a year.
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 1:59PM (Unverified) said
I guess no one listened when Bungie said a while ago that Halo 3 would be the final Halo game. Any and all games featuring Master Chief and the "Halo" universe from now on won't be called Halo, all the ring worlds have been destroyed.
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 3:28PM (Unverified) said
uh, no, Installation 04 and it's replacement were destroyed. All the other ones are still intact, and The Ark suffered some damage but not catastrophic
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 2:16PM (Unverified) said
I'll believe it when I see it. Didn't they say they were moving on when they bought their studio back from Microsoft? They already lied about that one. It seems lying is all Bungie is good at anymore.
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 3:39PM Dr Stabbingworth said
Bungie is one of the best developers in terms of communication. Just because they don't always show their cards to the unwashed fanboy masses doesn't mean they are liars. I'm sure they are working on non-Halo projects, which would constitute moving on.
And the last thing they need is criticism from whiny kids on the internet. Since when did they start letting middle school kids use the computer during the day?
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And the last thing they need is criticism from whiny kids on the internet. Since when did they start letting middle school kids use the computer during the day?
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 7:59PM (Unverified) said
Uh, since like the dawn of the 21st century, this isnt the stone ages melon farmer. what are you living under a rock?
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 3:38PM sk8monroe81 said
the worst move bungie could do is leave ms behind...
i think its more about ms leaving bungie behind and not wanting to pay them high amounts of money to produce something THEY believe others can for a much lower price as they own the rights and probably the code too.
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i think its more about ms leaving bungie behind and not wanting to pay them high amounts of money to produce something THEY believe others can for a much lower price as they own the rights and probably the code too.
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 3:17PM (Unverified) said
is the MGS4 guy working on recon or something else? The Halo Chronicles thing?
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Posted: Oct 20th 2008 3:36PM sk8monroe81 said
what exactly is bungie without the millions of dollars MS game studios have given them to make these games???
and we already know that ms gave halo 4 rights to another company right? to be released on the next xbox console.
bungie without a publisher and financier = not much more than a lot of code.....
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and we already know that ms gave halo 4 rights to another company right? to be released on the next xbox console.
bungie without a publisher and financier = not much more than a lot of code.....
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 3:51PM Dr Stabbingworth said
O RLY
It's not like they made any games before Halo...
But let's see what you've made since you're such the critic. Post some links to your work and we'll see exactly what you've done.
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It's not like they made any games before Halo...
But let's see what you've made since you're such the critic. Post some links to your work and we'll see exactly what you've done.
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 5:34PM sk8monroe81 said
yes dr.- bungie did not make any games before MS...
well they did sorry they made 3 games for the mac- marathon, myth, and oni- 3 titles we all remember. lol..
bungie was acquired by MS in 2000 before the release of Halo 1.
bungie is nothing to us (xbox 360 fans) without MS.
sorry dr.
dr. stab i am not a game maker... lol...
i do hold a valid california state contractors license though. and i also hold certifications in 2 specialized emergency resoration services and i do own my own company. thank you though...
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well they did sorry they made 3 games for the mac- marathon, myth, and oni- 3 titles we all remember. lol..
bungie was acquired by MS in 2000 before the release of Halo 1.
bungie is nothing to us (xbox 360 fans) without MS.
sorry dr.
dr. stab i am not a game maker... lol...
i do hold a valid california state contractors license though. and i also hold certifications in 2 specialized emergency resoration services and i do own my own company. thank you though...
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 5:38PM sk8monroe81 said
and dr. i did not critic their work.
all i said is that work is not much without marketing and millions of dollars spent of financing and publishing the game.
bungie making games on their own means they would still need a big publisher like activision or EA to pay for those needed items.
i would think that it would be in their best interest to stay behind MS and use ms game studios instead of another publisher.
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all i said is that work is not much without marketing and millions of dollars spent of financing and publishing the game.
bungie making games on their own means they would still need a big publisher like activision or EA to pay for those needed items.
i would think that it would be in their best interest to stay behind MS and use ms game studios instead of another publisher.
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 6:08PM sk8monroe81 said
dr. wouldnt you agree that working with the game studio that knows MORE about the 360 than any other company and has MORE money to use than any other company is the way to go....
no matter how much money EA throws out their window and spends on marketing they cant seem to get a game to sell more than a few million copies.
halo 3 is what 8 million sold...
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no matter how much money EA throws out their window and spends on marketing they cant seem to get a game to sell more than a few million copies.
halo 3 is what 8 million sold...
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 7:52PM (Unverified) said
All the games Bungie made before Halo were very good, and well received by the gaming community. The reason they stopped creating unique IP's is because they were forced to make Halo for eight years be Microsoft.
Bungie left Microsoft because they wanted to be able to make whatever they wanted, without having to clear it with their overlords. Anything they produce from now on will most likely be met with enthusiasm from publishers, based on their past performance.
What do you mean Bungie is nothing to you without Microsoft? Bungie is one of the main reasons the 360 exists, and is as popular as it is today.
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Bungie left Microsoft because they wanted to be able to make whatever they wanted, without having to clear it with their overlords. Anything they produce from now on will most likely be met with enthusiasm from publishers, based on their past performance.
What do you mean Bungie is nothing to you without Microsoft? Bungie is one of the main reasons the 360 exists, and is as popular as it is today.
Posted: Oct 20th 2008 11:13PM sk8monroe81 said
youre right they make great games and the 1 franchise that defined/s or at least is the flagship of the xbox/360.
if bungie makes good games in the future the gaming public and myself will probably be into those games...
i would just like to see if the work with other publishers or hire MS for those projects if they haven't already started some of them, but they are probably going to make multi platform games?
they werent forced to do anything. they sold their original company to merge with microsoft or whatever and that was their choice which paid off better than anytime in their 10 year history before that point.
anyways.. blah blah.
bungie and ms make and publish good games usually.
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if bungie makes good games in the future the gaming public and myself will probably be into those games...
i would just like to see if the work with other publishers or hire MS for those projects if they haven't already started some of them, but they are probably going to make multi platform games?
they werent forced to do anything. they sold their original company to merge with microsoft or whatever and that was their choice which paid off better than anytime in their 10 year history before that point.
anyways.. blah blah.
bungie and ms make and publish good games usually.
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