Sorry, Halo Wars fans – the series looks dead for now.
Halo custodian 343 had previously said its focus on The Master Chief Collection meant it had no plans to return to Halo Wars 2, the Creative Assembly-developed real-time strategy game released in 2017.
But with all of the MCC titles on PC, some had wondered if 343 would return updating Halo Wars 2 with new content. The news, unfortunately, is that Halo Wars 2 is ready.
Not only that, there are currently no plans to release a Halo Wars 3 – or any new game in the series.
“It’s not always easy to be open and transparent – especially if we don’t expect it to be an answer the community wants to hear – but we want to make it clear to you: 343 Industries currently has no plans for further Halo Wars 2 work, including content updates, balancing patches, transferring the title to other platforms, or a new game in the series, ‘wrote 343 community manager John Junyszek in a post on Halo Waypoint.
“However, we will continue to monitor the game and make sure everything works as expected.”
Junyszek emphasized the use of the word “currently”. Maybe Halo Wars will return in the future, but don’t hold your breath.
As of today, there is no plan for the development team to rejoin Halo Wars 2, and we’re not working on a new game in the series at this point. But we’re never specifically going to say never, because, well, who knows what the future will bring. “
In short: Halo Wars is not being worked on. The Halo Wars 2 Steam dream is over.
The obvious question is why?
“It really comes down to the reality of finite time, resources and focus for the studio,” said Junyszek.
“The 343 Publishing team is not short of ideas and inspiration to pursue for MCC and there is a lot of work to support the Halo franchise. Meanwhile, the majority of the studio is incredibly focused on the launch of Halo Infinite (and you may have also heard, ‘launch is just the beginning’).
“Given the broader impact initiatives that the studio has already committed to, we unfortunately cannot spend the time and attention we need to deliver additional updates and content for the Halo Wars franchise.”
Halo Wars 2 launched almost four years ago, with the last balance patch released in August 2020. It will be its final version.
“Halo Wars 2 expanded the Halo Universe, introduced new characters and experiences, and inspired the future of the franchise with its classic art style and the introduction of The Banished,” concluded Junyszek.
“Thanks again to everyone in the Halo Wars community for your support and we look forward to meeting The Banished together again this fall at Halo Infinite.”