343 Industries, commonly shortened to 343i, or just 343, is an American video game developer located in Kirkland, Washington. It was established in 2007 by Microsoft Game Studios to oversee development of the Halo science fiction media franchise, which includes video games, novels, comics, and other multimedia content. Its name derives from 343 Guilty Spark, a character within the Halo universe.
[edit] History
[edit] Formation
In July 2007 Microsoft filed for the name 343 Industries for its new Halo development studio,[2] after the former Halo studio, Bungie, separated from Microsoft.[3][4] It was named after the Halo character 343 Guilty Spark.[3][5][6] Bungie continued making Halo games until Halo: Reach in 2010.[7]
[edit] Development
In July 2009 it was announced that 343 Industries was working on a seven-part Halo anime series called Halo Legends.[8] Later that year the studio created Halo Waypoint, a downloadable application that tracks a user's Halo accomplishments.[9] 343I also increased staff for Halo development, recruiting 20 staff from the former Pandemic Studios.[10] 343i also developed Halo: Reach's second and third map packs, entitled "Defiant" and "Anniversary" respectively, in conjunction with Certain Affinity. Additionally, the studio was involved in the development of Halo Legends, a collection of animated short films based on the Halo lore. The Halo franchise was officially passed down to 343 Industries on March 31, 2012. The studio finished development of Halo 4 ahead of schedule that September.[1] The company was responsible for the HD remake of Halo: Combat Evolved, titled Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, which was released on November 15, 2011, to celebrate the 10th year since the first franchise installment on November 15, 2001. 343i completed their first official, new Halo installment, Halo 4, released on November 6, 2012, which is confirmed to be the first title of a Halo Reclaimer trilogy. Microsoft, in a contract with the Mega Bloks toy company, is in conjunction with 343i to manufacture a new line of toys and other memorabilia for the upcoming Halo trilogy.[11]
[edit] Properties
| Year |
Title |
Platform |
Notes |
| 2009 |
Halo Waypoint |
Xbox 360, Windows Phone 7, iOS, Android |
Initially developed in conjunction with Certain Affinity, the application receives regular updates including statistics, content browsing enhancements, and expanded career progression. These updates are done by 343i internally. |
| 2010 |
Halo: Reach |
Xbox 360 |
Developed by Bungie, 343 Industries was given control of the game and servers in August 2011. 343 and Certain Affinity developed its second and third map packs entitled "Defiant" and "Anniversary", respectively. |
| 2011 |
Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary[12] |
Xbox 360 |
Remake of Halo: Combat Evolved. It was developed by Saber Interactive with oversight by 343i. Released November 15, 2011 in the United States. |
| 2012 |
Halo 4[13] |
Xbox 360 |
Revealed E3 2011, as the first installment of a brand new Halo trilogy. Developed exclusively by 343 Industries. Released on November 6, 2012. |
[edit] References
- ^ a b What went wrong with Halo 4's Prometheans | Joystiq
- ^ Orry, James (July 21, 2009). "Is 343 Industries Microsoft's Halo studio?". Retrieved January 6, 2013.
- ^ a b Milian, Mark (May 11, 2011). "Halo' and creators move on after divorce". CNN. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
- ^ Romano, Benjamin (October 6, 2007). "Microsoft, "Halo" maker Bungie split". The Seattle Times. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
- ^ Thorsen, Tor (July 20, 2009). "Microsoft names internal Halo label?". Retrieved January 6, 2013.
- ^ Vore, Bryan (November 2011). "Taking Over 'Halo'". Game Informer 11 (223): 28–33. ISSN 1067-6392.
- ^ "Halo: Reach Will Be Bungie's Last Halo Game". IGN. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ^ Norris, Erik (July 23, 2009). "Halo Anime In The Works". Retrieved January 5, 2013.
- ^ McWhertor, Michael. "Comic-Con 09". kotaku.com. Retrieved December 6, 2011.
- ^ "Microsoft hires ex-Pandemic members for new Halo game". gamer.blorge.com. 2010-11-21. Archived from the original on 8 July 2011. Retrieved 2011-06-02.
- ^ "Mega Brands and Microsoft Game Studios Renew Global Licensing Partnership". Electronics Business Journal. June 2011.
- ^ "Microsoft leaks details about next Halo game". VentureBeat. 2011-06-06. Retrieved 2012-08-06.
- ^ "Microsoft E3 landing page leaks Kinect upgrades, Halo 4 news". Digital Trends. 2011-06-06. Retrieved 2012-08-06.
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