Bungie Independent: Official News

So it seems the rumours were true, the fight has finished, and along with it Bungie's money-spinning relationship with Microsoft.

Despite Microsoft's official statement of "... a plan for Bungie to embark on a path to become an independent company," and "evolving the relationship," the news still comes as huge blow to Microsoft's plans for the next-generation given the close affinity that Bungie, Master Chief, and Halo have with Xbox.

Retaining an equity interest in Bungie along with an unspecified publishing agreement, Microsoft will also hold onto the Halo IP and mentions further projects in the Bungie pipeline. Nevertheless, the fact remains that Bungie have become independent which opens up their doors to other platforms, even if Master Chief, Cortana, and 343 Guilty Spark won't be following them onto the PlayStation3.

"Our collaboration with Bungie has resulted in 'Halo' becoming an enduring mainstream hit," said Shane Kim, corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios. "While we are supporting Bungie's desire to return to its independent roots, we will continue to invest in our 'Halo' entertainment property with Bungie and other partners, such as Peter Jackson, on a new interactive series set in the 'Halo' universe. We look forward to great success with Bungie as our long-term relationship continues to evolve through 'Halo'-related titles and new IP created by Bungie."

"This exciting evolution of our relationship with Microsoft will enable us to expand both creatively and organizationally in our mission to create world-class games," said Harold Ryan, studio head for Bungie. "We will continue to develop with our primary focus on Microsoft's platforms; we greatly value our mutually prosperous relationship with our publisher, Microsoft Game Studios, and we look forward to continuing that affiliation through 'Halo' and beyond."

Hopefully it will allow both companies to draw a line and move away from the behemoth that is Halo, which despite its undeniable success has become something of a creative handicap for Bungie (Microsoft: "Forget the trilogy, we need Halo 4") and arguably a barrier for Microsoft themselves when it comes to expanding the Xbox 360 audience beyond the traditional hardcore demographic.

That said it's naïve to think this will be the end of Master Chief, although it's fair to say his future looks a little less certain then what it was before. Already there's been much speculation as to who could carry the Halo franchise forwards, though we'd like to think Master Chief will take a well-earned break before embarking on a plan to return to mankind.