Following this morning’s official confirmation of the game and its release window, franchise development director Frank O’Connor took to the Halo Waypoint blog to drop a few extra details. Before revealing the first concept art to the masses, O’Connor confirmed everyone’s suspicions that we will be hearing a lot more about Guardians at E3…
The director went on to unveil the concept art, which appears to depict desert outpost. He didn’t offer any context or details about the art, except that the team is aiming to use Halo 5 as an opportunity to push both the ecosystem and the universe forward by innovating and amplifying ideas. Buzzwords without context! The new artwork, as gorgeous as it may be, doesn’t bring us any closer to confirming who or what the Guardians are and the role they will play in Halo 5, but that will likely be clarified in the coming weeks.
O’Connor went on to acknowledge that the gaming community was correct to assume that a full-length Halo game requires at least a 3-year development timeline and that 2015 was the logical release window for the next major installment. We can all still hold out hope that a Halo 2 Anniversary arrives sometime in 2014, but the director did not acknowledge that possibility in his post. Instead, he kept his focus on Halo 5: Guardians and the new engine that is being developed to produce the sci-fi shooter.
Waiting until 2015 may be disappointing for some fans, but it really comes as no surprise and it sounds like the improvements to the game’s architecture will make the wait worth it when a truly next-gen experience is delivered. Games like Titanfall (and soon Destiny) are already delivering what it is being boasted as the first next-gen shooter experience, so it will interesting to see how much 343 ups the ante with the next installment of Halo. If waiting until 2015 still seems unbearable for some gamers, they can always hold out hope that the E3 announcements include confirmation of the Halo 2 Anniversary rumors.
“Bonnie also called out 60fps and dedicated servers last year — attractive, desirable, and possibly expected upgrades to the Halo experience. After all, we won’t be the first 60fps shooter out there. That said, these must-haves are not necessarily easy to achieve.”
343 Industries General Manager Bonnie Ross did say the following alongside the initial Halo 5 announcing on Xbox Wire.
Does the first concept art spark any theories for you about Halo 5’s setting and plot? Do you think waiting until 2015 is worth it to have the game developed on new engine? Let us know in the comments.
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Sourcse: Halo Waypoint, Xbox Wire
