Former Halo lead suggests three ways Activision could revive the legendary series, and urges the company to hire laid off Bungie staff

Frank O’Connor, the former creative director of the Halo franchise with over 20 years of experience on the series, has offered strategic advice to Activision following the publisher’s recent acquisition of development responsibilities for the next mainline Halo title. O’Connor, who left Microsoft in 2023 during organizational changes at 343 Industries before its rebranding to Halo Studios, shared recommendations on LinkedIn on September 25, 2026.

His primary suggestion urges Activision to hire developers laid off from both Bungie and Halo Studios, given their deep expertise with the franchise. O’Connor also outlined three potential paths forward for the series’ future, though he acknowledged that “none of these are easy, guaranteed or necessarily viable.”

This comes as Halo Studios has been relegated to a secondary support role following Xbox’s strategic reset, while Activision constructs a dedicated team to develop the franchise’s next entry. The transition represents a significant shift for the storied sci-fi series, which has experienced considerable turbulence in recent years. O’Connor’s intervention highlights the ongoing challenge of steering Halo back to relevance and quality standards while addressing the broader industry conversation about expertise retention following major staff reductions.

Former Halo lead suggests three ways Activision could revive the legendary series, and urges the company to hire laid off Bungie staff

Sources