343 Industries has changed its name and confirmed the development of several Halo games on Unreal Engine 5

Microsoft-owned studio 343 Industries, which produces the Halo sci-fi shooter series, has announced a rebranding and confirmed the franchise will be moving to the Unreal Engine.

Image Source: Halo Studios

As it became known, 343 Industries is now called Halo Studios. The rebranding is positioned as the beginning of a new chapter for the company – the team seeks to rethink the approach to developing games in the series.

As part of the initiative, Halo Studios will stop using the internal Slipspace engine and switch to Unreal Engine 5. The team has several projects in development for the franchise in UE5.

Published alongside the announcement, the 6-minute video showcases Halo Studios’ progress on Project Foundry, an experimental project where employees are exploring the limits of what’s possible with the new engine.

According to the head of Halo Studios, Pierre Hintze, most of the developments from Project Foundry in one form or another should end up in future games in the series that are currently in production.

As for the next big Halo, you shouldn’t count on a quick release and frequent updates for the project. Halo Studios plans to dive headfirst into development.

Meanwhile, Halo Infinite, released in late 2021 and based on the Slipspace engine, will continue to be supported: new operations, improvements to the Forge editor, third-person mode (in November).