Halo Infinite developer Kolbe Payne has officially left the studio. January 7 was his last day working for 343 Industries, and he’s now taken a position at Darksiders studio Gunfire Games.
Payne was a campaign level/gameplay designer on Halo Infinite from April 2019 to January 2021. His LinkedIn page says he worked for 343 on a contract basis.
Payne is now working at Austin, Texas-based developer Gunfire Games as a junior level designer, though it’s not immediately clear what project he’s contributing to.
Payne snapped a nice photo of himself leaving the 343 office, complete with Master Chief standing in the background and a Halo-branded cushion on a chair.
“I’ll see you later this year Chief,” Payne said in his farewell tweet, referencing Halo Infinite’s planned release in Fall 2021.
Halo Infinite has gone through a fair amount of staff turnover in recent years, but Xbox boss Phil Spencer says that is nothing out of the ordinary.
Halo Infinite was originally slated to release as a launch title for the Xbox Series X|S in November, but Microsoft elected to push the game to 2021 due in part to complications related to COVID-19 and working from home. Recently, 343 boss Bonnie Ross said the wait will be worth it.
The game is shaking things up for the franchise, as it runs on a completely new engine and the multiplayer element of Halo Infinite will be free-to-play with microtransactions.
When Halo Infinite is released, it will be free for Xbox Game Pass subscribers and available on Xbox One, PC, and Xbox Series X|S.
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