There are some odd happenings right now for the iconic Halo franchise, as a longtime art director has left developer Halo Studios with an ominous statement.
Glenn Israel, who worked as an artist on numerous games such as Halo 3: ODST, Halo 4, Destiny, Halo 5: Guardians, and Halo Infinite across Bungie and later, 343 Industries (the former name for Halo Studios) shared on LinkedIn that he was leaving the team.
“As of today and after seventeen long years, I am officially no longer contributing to the Halo universe. There is little more I can say for the moment, though I intend to share this particular story in its entirety when it is absolutely safe to do so next year. In the meantime, I have a message for anyone and everyone who needs to hear it,” Israel writes.
“I know that the state of our industry seems dire, but never forget that you are *free to choose*. No illusion of security nor promise of wealth or fame or power is worth trading away your health, your dignity, your ethics or values – and no one can force you to. Stay strong, take evidence when necessary, and find where you belong.”
This also comes as Halo-focused YouTuber Rebs Gaming put out a new video, in which he claims sources have told him of leadership problems at Halo Studios.
While developers shift and leave jobs for myriad reasons, this is certainly eyebrow-raising. At the same time, it’s just the statement of one person, leaving out of hundreds that are still at the studio. We’ll have to wait to find out more.
Halo Studios has been through a huge shake-up over the last several years, beyond the name, with changes in leadership and significant layoffs back in 2023.
Halo stands at a pivotal moment
This also comes at a time when players are waiting to hear more about the world of Halo. While Halo Infinite is still receiving updates, the frequency and size of many of these updates have died down, and the fanbase is looking to hear more about the future.
To that end, Halo Studios has strongly indicated players won’t be waiting for much longer. In 2024, the team revealed its rebrand away from 343 Industries, unveiling the new name alongside a tech demo called Project Foundry.
Project Foundry was built in Unreal Engine 5, showing reimagined assets and characters from Halo: Combat Evolved, updated with modern visual fidelity. Halo Studios also confirmed at the time that, in addition to switching to Unreal Engine 5, it was working on multiple new games, though there weren’t any other details shared.
Earlier in 2025, Halo Studios teased that there would be an announcement worth tuning in for at the Halo World Championship on October 24 through 26.
“Speculation is always fun, but if you want the official scoop on what Halo Studios has been working on, you won’t want to miss this year’s Halo World Championship. We really hope you’ll join us in Seattle this October!” the team wrote.
Personally, I remain curious about the projects (plural) aspect of Halo Studios. While speculation and reports have indicated some kind of remaster could be on the way — something that’s strongly aided by the direction of Project Foundry — I can’t help but wonder about what else the team is working on.
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