Game developers that manage to stay with a single franchise over an extended period of time are rare and the Halo franchise is a perfect example of why. The Halo series has had its ups and downs, even moving from Bungie to 343 Industries over a decade ago. Halo designer Paul Bertone has had a more unique path than most. He rode out Bungie's tenure under Microsoft and then left before Destiny's release. Yet, having gone full circle, Bertone is coming home to Halo and joining 343.A message from Joseph Staten, Halo Infinite's head of creative, confirmed on Wednesday that Paul Bertone was now a part of 343 Industries. Bertone will be taking on an important role within the company as its Studio Technical Design Director, ensuring that his vision for the future of Halo will be just as influential as his work on Halo's past.For those unfamiliar, Paul Bertone was a key player in Bungie during the development of the original Halo trilogy and beyond. He served as a designer for Halo: Combat Evolved, was promoted to Lead Mission Designer for Halo 2, then to Lead Campaign Designer for Halo 3, and then Design Director for Halo 3: ODST. He also received a tip of the cap for his work on Halo: Reach for design work. Needless to say, he's a part of what made Halo the success it is today.
After Halo, however, Bertone's life when in a surprising direction. He left Bungie in 2012, two years before the release of Destiny. Between 2012 and 2022, he went from working at Industrial Toys to self-employed, from Undead Labs to Probably Monsters, back to self-employed and then to Highwire Games where he was Lead Designer on the controversial Six Days in Fallujah. Now, ten years after he left Bungie, he's joining 343 Industries.
Few could argue Bertone's experience, but this will certainly be his biggest role in game development yet. It's yet to be seen whether controversies surrounding Six Days in Fallujah will follow the game's developers beyond. It's tentatively planned for release later this year. There are also controversies surrounding 343 itself, particularly regarding the handling of Halo Infinite. Bertone has his work cut out for him.
One interesting aspect of Bertone's hiring may be what 343 Industries is working on next. Support for Halo Infinite is obvious, but Bertone's Halo experience is rather deeply rooted in the series' campaigns. It's perhaps a coincidence that there are reports of 343 working on a new campaign for Halo Infinite to be released as DLC or an expansion in the years to come. Needless to say, Halo fans will be watching and waiting.
Halo Infinite is available now on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.