Following the announcement that Microsoft is planning to cut thousands of jobs, Halo’s former senior multiplayer designer has taken to Twitter to criticize the tech giant.
in a twitter post (opens in new tab)Patrick Wren claimed that Microsoft’s “incompetent leadership” caused stress on developers during the creation of Halo Infinite and resulted in recent layoffs.
Wren wrote, “The layoffs at 343 shouldn’t have happened and Halo Infinite should be in better shape.” “Both of those things lead to incompetent leadership at the top during Halo Infinite development, which can put a huge strain on those working hard to make Halo the best it can be.”
“The people I worked with every day were passionate about Halo and wanted to build something great for fans,” Wren continued. “He helped push for a better halo and got shut down for it.”
Microsoft recently announced plans to cut over 10,000 jobs due to fears of a slowing global economy. 343 isn’t the only game studio affected by industry cuts, with Starfield developer Bethesda Game Studios also reporting significant layoffs.
more to come
Despite Halo Infinite’s November 2021 release date, developer 343 Industries has yet to put time and effort into patching Master Chief’s latest adventure post-launch. The final Halo Infinite update for 2022, released in December, was the biggest in recent memory and added a new arena multiplayer map called Empyrean, based on the Halo 3 map, The Pit. The close-quarters area had two hut-style bases for flags on each side, with opposing towers for snipers and a central hall in the middle. However, 343 changed some elements of the original map to fit the style of Halo Infinite. Scrap cannons replaced the machine gun turrets at each base, and weapon spawns were updated to use Halo Infinite’s weapon racks.
Along with various new Armor Core unlocks and new Cadet coatings, 343 Industries also implemented networking improvements. These updates mean that damage dealt and received by players is now more consistent and manageable, as in previous builds, it was possible for some Spartans to avoid damage by sliding.
While the future of this beloved series is still uncertain after Microsoft’s layoffs, Bloomberg reports that 343 Industries studio head, Pierre Heintz, reassured colleagues in an email that support for Halo Infinite’s multiplayer will continue. However, what this support will look like remains to be seen.