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The persistent rumor that Bungie, developers behind the Halo series, was splitting off from Microsoft has been confirmed today with an announcement from Bungie, who has officially become an independent company.
According to their official website, Bungie has “reached an unprecedented and exciting agreement” with Microsoft. The press release further stated that “Bungie has long been built on creativity, originality and the freedom to pursue ideas. Microsoft agreed, and rather than stifle our imagination, they decided it was in both our best interests to unleash it. We’ll continue to make Xbox 360 games, and we’ll continue to make amazing games for MGS. In that regard, nothing has changed. All that has changed is that now Bungie Studios is once again, the property of the folks of Bungie Studios. Microsoft is and will continue to be, a brilliant, inventive and creatively collaborative publishing partner. Practically speaking, nothing has changed…”
The Halo franchise will remain the property of Microsoft. Shane Kim, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios, stated in the Microsoft press release that “While we are supporting Bungie’s desire to return to its independent roots, we will continue to invest in our ‘Halo’ entertainment property with Bungie and other partners, such as Peter
Jackson, on a new interactive series set in the ‘Halo’ universe. We look forward to great success with Bungie as our long-term relationship continues to evolve through ‘Halo’-related titles and new IP created by Bungie.”
Even despite the persistence of the rumors, this news may catch many gamers and industry insiders as a shock, considering that the Bungie developed Halo 3 made Microsoft $300 million in its first week of sales. However, long term effects of this “evolved” relationship remains to be seen, although according to the Bungie post, “nothing has changed and you guys won’t see much, if any difference, for a while…”
We’ll keep you posted as this story develops.