Frank O’Connor, the former franchise director who helped shape Halo’s golden era, has offered Activision a set of strategic pointers for reviving the legendary sci-fi shooter, headlined by a call to recruit developers who were laid off from both Bungie and Halo Studios. Speaking on a LinkedIn post, O’Connor laid out three distinct paths for the company’s upcoming project, while cautioning that none of the options are “easy, guaranteed or necessarily viable” as Activision prepares to take the reins of the franchise.
O’Connor’s tenure with the iconic series stretches back to the early 2000s, when he joined Bungie and eventually rose to become the series’ development director at 343 Industries. He departed the studio during an internal shakeup in 2023, shortly before 343 rebranded into Halo Studios, which has since been significantly reduced in size due to Xbox’s broader restructuring efforts. His comments arrive as Activision, now the owner of the Halo IP, works to assemble what it has described as a “purpose-built team” for making the next Halo game.
Three Paths Forward
The first option O’Connor proposed is a return to form: a “classic” Halo game built around the series’ familiar, heavy movement and chaotic sandbox gameplay. He suggested this approach be “tailored to a core audience” while being scaled to remain “attractive to a broader one so it can grow,” noting the “obvious fact that Halo MP is better with more people playing, by mathematical default.” The strategy leans on the multiplayer franchise’s well-established fanbase while attempting to draw in new players.
The second path envisions a dramatically different direction, one that “reinvents the game/universe in a surprising but fantastic way.” O’Connor left the specifics open-ended, writing, “Maybe it’s a new take on the FPS, maybe it’s an action RPG.” He acknowledged such an overhaul would earn “a small head start based on curiosity or loyalty,” though he may have been alluding to the fact that a full-on lore reboot was not universally embraced by series fans.
The third and perhaps most pragmatic option resembles what some fans have dubbed “Call of Halo.” O’Connor suggested Activision could “translate Halo IP and sandbox into the comfort zone” by leveraging “player progress and business models that are proven to work” repeatedly across the Call of Duty series. This would allow the company to “craft a big annual or semi-annual spectacle and constant content,” mirroring its approach to its other heavyweight military shooter franchise.
“There are three paths. None of these are easy, guaranteed or necessarily viable.”
Frank O’Connor, former Halo franchise director
Bonus Advice and Community Reaction
Beyond the three main strategies, O’Connor offered two additional pieces of advice. His first was a direct appeal to Activision to “Hire Bungie, Halo Studios and other laid off folk who are bursting with talent and ideas that got nerfed or shut down over the years.” His second warning urged the publisher to avoid tying the next Halo to “hardware/service launch cycles” or forcing it to launch on aging platforms, a reference to Halo Infinite’s Xbox One version, which drew criticism for its compromised technical performance.
The comments have resonated with a community still processing the franchise’s turbulent recent history, including the high-profile departure of Bungie and the ongoing restructuring under Microsoft’s ownership. O’Connor’s candid framing—acknowledging the difficulty of each path—has been widely appreciated as a grounded perspective from someone with deep, firsthand experience of the series’ development.
Looking Ahead
Activision’s Halo project remains firmly in its infancy, with the publisher having not yet assembled a new team for the endeavor. As a result, the game is likely years away from release, leaving ample time for the company to weigh O’Connor’s suggestions as it builds its “purpose-built team.” Fans are now hoping Master Chief’s next comeback avoids the turbulence that marked his previous attempts, with O’Connor’s remarks offering a thoughtful roadmap for how Activision might navigate the challenges ahead.
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