8 Failing Video Game Franchises That JUST WON'T DIE
3. Halo
Once upon a time, Halo was the FPS franchise to beat, with the series' original trilogy serving as major gemstones of the Xbox brand.
But the quality took a bit of a dip with Halo 4 - which saw developer Bungie subbed out for 343 Industries - and Halo 5: Guardians proved wildly divisive with fans, for both its lackluster single-player campaign and microtransaction implementation in multiplayer.
2021's Halo Infinite was decently received upon launch, but it simply lacked the staying power to keep all but the most die-hard fans playing in perpetuity, causing the Steam player count to steadily decline in the 18 months after release.
Add to this some major internal turmoil at 343 between layoffs and scrapped projects, and it feels like Halo's best days are long behind it.
343 are reportedly "all but starting from scratch" with the franchise moving forward, and while this could get things back on track long-term, it doesn't paint the most encouraging picture for a series which used to be the dominant console FPS beyond compare.