343 Industries Announces Partnership With Esports Engine for Halo Esports

by Isaac Chandler in General | Feb, 19th 2020

Microsoft owned Halo franchise developer 343 Industries has been quiet on the esports front for the franchise ahead of the launch of the next game in the series Halo Infinite, dropping later this year.

After discussing plans for the future of the scene in November, we haven’t seen much going on the public-facing side of the scene beyond the release of Halo: The Master Chief Collection for PC and the promise of PC tournaments to come.

The studio is finally opening up about some of those changes coming with the launch of Infinite. Today, they announced a partnership with outside esports event company Esports Engine to help run the game’s esports circuit.

In a statement on the Halo Waypoint website, 343 discussed the partnership and how it will help them create the largest esports push in the storied franchise’s history.

“To build the greatest esports program Halo has ever seen, it will take a massive effort – however, we don’t intend to do it alone,” Halo Esports Lead Producer Tashi noted. “It is our mission to deliver the best esports program that Halo has ever seen in its 18-year history and we couldn’t think of a better partner to work with than the long time Halo fans and esports veterans at Esports Engine.”

New Company, Old Talent

While the partnership itself is a huge surprise, it makes sense given Esports Engines’ background with Halo. Beyond a passion for the game amongst staff, the company is made up of esports industry veterans who helped build and run MLG from its humble beginnings in 2002 until its acquisition by Activision in 2016.

With such a prestigious pedigree behind them, and given MLG’s important historical role in Halo esports, bringing in a team that knows what makes the scene unique will be a major leg-up in getting the scene back to its former glory.

For their part, 343 wasted no time in getting things running. The end of the press release states: “Esports Engine have been integrated with the HCS team here at 343 Industries as we’ve been building out the program. Whether it’s ecosystem design, format and league operations, broadcasts, and more, the Esports Engine team are equipped to help us fully realize our vision for Halo Infinite esports.”

With veterans of Halo esports’ glory days coming back on board and a renewed focus from 343 on the competitive aspect of the game, the launch of Halo Infinite is getting more exciting by the day for long-time fans.

343 has a long way to go to rebuild the scene. However, it looks like things are going in the right direction so far.