Xbox cancels new Halo game, sources claim, as gamers suffer yet another blow

You'll forgive us for being a bit cynical, but it very much feels like the house of cards is coming dangerously close to falling down when it comes to the world of video games. While we should be cheering what looks like it'll be the biggest year in gaming yet, with releases like Resident Evil Requiem, 007 First Light, Marvel's Wolverine, and the juggernaut that is GTA VI, we're instead being hit by wave upon wave of bad news.

If the so-called RAMageddon of AI forcing up console prices wasn't enough to deal with, there was uproar as GTA VI confirmed it won't come with an actual disc. This was just the start of a pretty glum run, with Xbox bracing for a slew of studio closures and Sony announcing it'll stop making physical games in January 2028.

That felt like more than enough to deal with, but apparently, Xbox has just canned an unannounced Halo multiplayer.

What was Halo's Project Ekur?

Although there's plenty of hype about Halo: Campaign Evolved being a full-blown remake of the OG game from 2001, the future of the Xbox flagship remains up in the air. Rumours aside, there's no concrete confirmation on what the inevitable follow-up to 2021's Halo Infinite will be, and in a case of kicking us while we're down, a reported multiplayer title called 'Project Ekur' has apparently kicked the bucket.

Over on YouTube, Rebs Gaming claims the long-rumoured title is no more. Rebs Gaming previously described the mystery game as an extraction shooter that was being developed by Certain Affinity. That all fits together nicely, especially as Certain Affinity has an impressive Halo resume that stretches all the way back to working on Halo 2's Blastacular Map Pack multiplayer DLC.

It was also part of a melting pot of developers who worked on Halo Infinite, joining 343 Industries, SkyBox Labs, Sperasoft, The Coalition, and Atomhawk. Take from that what you will.

It's important to stress that Project Ekur was never officially announced, so it's not quite on a par with the rumoured cancellation of Akrane Lyon's Marvel's Blade, but still, two sources supposedly close to the Halo multiplayer claim it's no more.

Way back in January 2022, there were rumblings that a multiplayer spin-off called Project Tatanka was in the works. Even though Tatanka wasn't specifically named in an April 2022 update, Certain Affinity said it was 'deepening' its relationship with 343 Industries.

Project Tatanka later evolved into reports of Halo's own take on a battle royale, but whereas that was put out to pasture in early 2024, the idea of a multiplayer-only game for Halo Arena fans lived on.

According to Rebs Gaming, Certain Affinity asked whether Blam! (early codename for Combat Evolved) could be imported into Unreal Engine 5, as well as whether an Unreal Engine 5 game could still feel like Halo.

READ MORE: Halo: Campaign Evolved Might Be the Game That Saves the Franchise

The future of Halo

Both Halo Infinite and the now-defunct Tatanka map were supposedly imported into Ekur for gameplay testing in June 2023, although it seems the project got lost in the shuffle and might've been folded into whatever Halo Studios has planned for the future.

Lamenting the game's loss over on Reddit, one fan wept: "Microsoft was the Halo killer after all."

Referring to the recent dramas, another added: "At some point, Xbox and PlayStation clearly decided 'we’ve had enough good news' and here we are."

A third cried: "I think I've come to terms with the fact that we may never get a good Halo multiplayer game again. Ever since 4 they've tried to introduce call of duty or elements from other games instead of just making a Halo game. I'm sad guys."

Even though there's been some backlash against the idea that Halo will lose its Xbox exclusivity, at least the franchise is alive and kicking. Up there with Gears of War and Forza, Halo remains a cornerstone of the old Xbox days.

343 Industries notably rebranded as Halo Studios in October 2024 and confirmed that multiple projects were in the works while using Unreal Engine 5, but what they are and where they're up to remains up in the air.

Following Campaign Evolved, there are claims that campaign-only current-gen remakes of Halo 2 and Halo 3 could be in the works, while all eyes are on Asha Sharma in terms of what comes next.

We imagine that Halo 7 is out there somewhere in the aether, and even though the multiplayer element will undoubtedly help keep the IP alive, don't count on a Big Team Battle standalone coming anytime soon.