Halo Studios Writers Reveal What Could Have Been Before Activision Takeover

Did you know Halo Studios had big plans for Master Chief before Activision stepped in? In a bittersweet blog post following the launch of Halo: Campaign Evolved, the studio gave us a glimpse of what might have been—and it's a lot to process.

The post, penned by Halo franchise writer Alex Wakeford, dives into the future of Master Chief's story, but it also tries to canonize a narrative that's been told across games, remakes, books, and TV. You can check out the full blog for its list of retcons and continuity clarifications. But here's the kicker: most of it was written before the Xbox reshuffle, when Halo Studios still thought the series was in their hands. There are even addendums added just before the news broke. At one point, Wakeford joked that you'd have to wait until next week to learn more about the Sacristan Order, then noted, "This joke sure took on new dimensions after last week's news." Ouch.

So what did they have planned? For starters, two novels are in the works: Halo: Fireteam Noble by Troy Denning and Halo: Burn the Road Home by Kenneth Peters. Wakeford said it's "absolutely our intent to see this project cross the finish line," but their future is uncertain. No word on refunds if they don't make it. We also got official art of the Primordial by Sam Wood—the creature that would become the Gravemind from Halo 2. Wakeford described it as "a creature of horrifying providence and intent," and explained how its consciousness passed into the Flood's hive mind after being executed by Bornstellar. Creepy stuff.

But the most intriguing tease? The Xalanyn, children of Abaddon. "THE ENDLESS EMERGE," Wakeford declared, leaving fans with something to spark their imagination. The Xalanyn are an advanced race of immortal beings imprisoned by the Forerunners. The implication is that Halo 7—or whatever the next game would have been called—would have revealed more about these mysterious antagonists. The concept art is stunning, and it's hard not to feel a pang of sadness that we might never see them in action. It's about time Halo got some new enemies to chew through.

Instead, Halo will probably become Xbox's Call of Duty (let's pretend Call of Duty isn't already Xbox's Call of Duty). Halo Studios' final game, Halo: Campaign Evolved, launched globally on July 28, 2026, and IGN praised its "gunplay that revolutionized first-person console games," saying it's still "worth playing today." The game was a testbed for a switch to Unreal Engine after Halo Infinite's middling launch on the proprietary Slipspace Engine.

Meanwhile, the Xbox reshuffle has had other consequences: Ninja Theory announced layoffs and closed down, and staff at The Coalition (Gears of War: E-Day) are reportedly expecting layoffs despite positive reviews for their latest game. It's a tough time for Xbox studios, and Halo fans are left wondering what's next.

What do you think about these scrapped plans? Are you sad to see the Xalanyn go, or are you curious about what Activision will do with Halo? Let us know in the comments!