Project Foundry is a real-time project created by the Halo Studios development team as part of the studio's transition from the old Blam/Slipspace Engine to Unreal Engine for game development. It was formally announced on the final day of the Halo World Championship 2024 event, alongside the rebranding of 343 Industries to Halo Studios. The project is a collection of three real-time environments created in Unreal Engine 5, designed to explore what would be needed to transition the studio and its development pipelines into using Unreal, and what kind of challenges might faced while doing it. When announced, Halo Studios noted that Foundry is not a game, nor is it a testbed for one, instead emphasizing the exploratory nature of the development process.[1][2]
The demo was created as part of 343 Industries' transition into Halo Studios, under the direction of the new studio leadership led by Pierre Hintze. As part of this vision, Hintze explained that while making Halo Infinite, 343 Industries had been attempting to be both a game developer and a software company at the same time by attempting to build and maintain the Slipspace Engine while developing Halo Infinite. This led to difficulties in production due to the studio's divided attention; something that Halo Studios aims to solve by switching to an engine developed by another studio - allowing them to refocus entirely on game production. As such, all future Halo games will use Unreal 5.[1][2]
The demo has three environments; a classic, Pacific Northwest-styled environment inspired by preexisting Halo levels such as the eponymous mission from Halo: Combat Evolved, the Coldlands, a winter biome with a star visible behind the ring, and the Blightlands - a Flood-infested environment.[1][2] All three reuse some Halo Infinite assets such as the Forerunner beacon towers, with the Coldlands environment featuring a Banshee that flies through the sky. The classic environment is used for a handful of dioramas; the first depicting the Master Chief clad in Halo Infinite's rendition of the MJOLNIR Mark V armor while wielding an M6D magnum, fighting a Sangheili Mercenary equipped with an energy sword, while the latter depicts only the Master Chief equipped with the same energy sword.
The demo was unveiled with a trailer, titled A New Dawn, featuring interviews with several developers involved in the project and featuring a look at some of the animations and moving effects including waterfalls, weather, and Flood spores.[3]
Gallery
The classic environment.
The Coldlands.
The Blightlands.
John-117 fighting an Elite.
Closeup of an M6D Magnum.
Sources
- ^ a b c Halo Waypoint, A New Dawn (Retrieved on Oct 7, 2024) [archive]
- ^ a b c Xbox Wire, Halo Studios: New Name, New Engine, New Games, New Philosophy (Retrieved on Oct 7, 2024) [archive]
- ^ YouTube - HALO, A New Dawn | Halo Studios (Retrieved on Oct 7, 2024)
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