Ex-Halo Creative Director Tells Activision: Hire the Laid-Off Devs, Keep the Sandbox

With Activision Blizzard now handling the development of future Halo games, veterans of the series are weighing in, and few carry more authority than Frank O'Connor. He spent more than two decades on Halo, starting as a writer and community manager and serving as franchise creative director from 2003 to 2023.

On September 25, O'Connor posted his thoughts on LinkedIn, replying to former Xbox social media manager Genevieve Harrison, who had been discussing Activision Blizzard's development approach. His first piece of advice was a set of warnings. "Do NOT tie it to hardware/services launch cycles, do not try to force it into a shape (or aging platform) that it can't fit and do NOT abandon sandbox," he wrote. He then added a second tip: hire Bungie, Halo Studios and other laid-off developers who are "bursting w. talent and ideas that got nerfed or shut down over the years."

O'Connor also sketched three directions the next game could take. The first is a classic Halo built around sandbox play, movement and gunplay, tailored to a core audience and scaled so it succeeds with them while staying appealing enough to grow beyond it.

The second is something new and modern. He floated a "surprising but fantastic" reinvention, such as an action-sandbox game offering a fresh take on the FPS, or an action RPG that is fundamentally different but leans on strong storytelling and the Halo IP.

The third plays to Activision's strengths. A Halo with the player, progression and business models the publisher is known for through Call of Duty could work as "a big annual or semi-annual spectacle" with a steady stream of content.

O'Connor was careful to say none of these paths is "easy, guaranteed, or necessarily viable." Still, he believes one of them could succeed now that Activision is at the wheel.

He is not the only former Halo figure reacting. Co-creator Marcus Lehto said on September 23 that he was "shocked but not entirely surprised" by the change. For now, the only detail confirmed is that the next Halo will be a full-featured, mainline installment in the long-running series. Fans, like Lehto, are waiting to hear what comes next.