Gab Hernandez 
The Halo battle royale project is allegedly canceled, leaving the future of 343 Industries, Halo: Infinite, and the franchise as a whole uncertain.
The codenamed “Project Tatanka” has had a troubled production since its announcement. A Halo-style take on the popular genre was reported to be in the works in late 2022, with long-time collaborator Certain Affinity headlining the massive multiplayer. Certain Affinity was known as a support studio, particularly for multiplayer aspects of Halo games.
Now it seems that most or all of the in-progress Halo: Infinite expansions and side projects are being scrapped, possibly in favor of Halo’s next-generation release. This comes at a time of outward trouble for Halo: Infinite, a game that has been defined by canceled features.
Is the Halo battle royale mode canceled?
The Halo battle royale project has reportedly been canceled.
The project was never officially announced, but reports about its development popped up for a long while and developers alluded to its existence. The reported cancellation comes amid a time of major upheaval within Microsoft-owned gaming studios and gaming as a whole.
In January 2023, 343 Industries laid off 95 people from its staff, many of whom were veterans of the Halo franchise. Veterans who were let go from 343, such as former designer Patrick Wren, have cited “incompetent leadership up top” as a major reason for the Halo franchise’s stagnancy. Surrounding this, a number of major figures in 343 Industries have left the company including former studio head Bonnie Ross, franchise development director Frank O’Connor, and former executive producer Kiki Wolfkill are among the people in leadership roles who have left the company.
The pivot from the Slipspace engine to Unreal Engine 5 also meant ongoing Halo projects had to restart from scratch, likely including the battle royale project. Although Project Tatanka started was a battle royale mode, Bloomberg reports that people working on it stated that the project would “evolve in different directions.” The focus on Halo’s multiplayer aspects has left fans who wanted more of the franchise’s epic campaign disappointed.
Will Halo: Infinite have single-player updates?
Halo: Infinite has no single-player campaign content in active development.
This was confirmed by 343 Industries community director Brian Jarrard confirmed this in an interview. The lack of campaign support has been one of the biggest criticisms thrown 343’s way. Although the gameplay itself was praised for diverging from Halo’s typically linear structure, there also hasn’t been any story DLC ever since. With no battle royale and no single-player content in the works, there don’t seem to be many significant additions to Halo: Infinite in the pipeline.
Given how ambitious Halo: Infinite’s campaign was, it left many single-player fans feeling they were left with a half-baked story. A continuation of Master Chief’s exploits likely won’t be arriving until the next Halo game is released. As for when the next Halo game is coming out, no official word has dropped and it may be a while before Halo fans hear anything concrete.
