Halo Studios Says It Is Absolutely Its Intent to Release New Halo Book Despite Layoffs

Halo Studios says “it is absolutely our intent” to release a new Halo book, despite layoffs and a rumored lore reboot from Activision. The studio’s franchise writer, Alex Wakeford, confirmed in a recent Halo Waypoint blog post that the upcoming novel Halo: Fireteam Noble is still on track.

“We are determined to see this through to completion,” Wakeford wrote, speaking about the novel. He added that the previously-announced book was “absolutely our intent to see this project cross the finish line.”

What Changed at Halo Studios

The console maker’s sweeping restructure hit Halo Studios with mass layoffs, and the entire series now falls under Activision’s supervision. Xbox’s Matt Booty said “a small team at Halo Studios will continue supporting the Halo community and games in-market.”

That shakeup raised questions about everything tied to the franchise, including upcoming stories. December’s Halo Fest event is still going ahead, but the future of in-development novels has been uncertain since Activision’s rumored lore reboot.

The Two Novels That Are Still Coming

Wakeford addressed both announced books directly. Halo: Fireteam Noble, penned by Troy Denning, was previously set to come out next year and takes place after Halo 5‘s story. Denning has written several of the best Halo books and also contributed to Halo: Campaign Evolved‘s three-mission prequel arc.

For the newly-revealed novella, Halo: Burn the Road Home, Wakeford said the studio is also determined to see it through. “We are determined to see this through to completion,” he wrote.

Details on the novella are light, but a portion of the blog post written before the layoffs mentioned it is “dropping out of slipspace next year.” The phrase’s meaning is not explained in the post.

What the Blog Post Showed

The rest of the Halo Waypoint post included concept art set on Zeta Halo — the ring from Halo Infinite — showing biomes that did not make it into the final game. Wakeford ended the post with a note about the long-running Canon Fodder series.

“With that, Canon Fodder has come to an end,” he wrote. “Forever? Who knows, eh? Who knows. Those who come after may well choose to continue it, a new author may yet lend their pen to this series for future narrative endeavors.”

He closed with a nod to the future of Halo storytelling: “Go forth and deliver unto the community the good word about all things Halo story and lore… And we have loved this great journey with you all so very, very much.”

Halo fans now know the studio’s intent toward both books, even as the franchise moves under Activision’s control.

Source material: “Halo Studios says "it is absolutely our intent" to release new Halo book, despite layoffs and a rumored lore reboot from Activision,” Eurogamer.

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