Joseph Staten, head of creative on Halo Infinite and cinematic director on the first three Halo games, is leaving Microsoft, the company confirmed to IGN.
In its message, Microsoft did not say where Staten will be next, or why he is leaving Microsoft after nine years.
“We are grateful for Joseph’s contributions to the Halo franchise and Xbox as a whole,” a Microsoft spokesperson said. “We wish him all the best in his new venture.”
Staten himself took to Twitter comment in IGN’s report, saying, “Hey folks, I’m really leaving Microsoft. I’ll have more information to share soon, but for now, I just want to thank all my colleagues at Xbox for everything of their understanding and support as I embark on a new adventure.”
Staten has long been one of the most recognizable names behind the Halo franchise, having been the cinematic director on Combat Evolved, Halo 2, and Halo 3, and serving as lead writer on Destiny while with Bungie.
He eventually left Bungie for Microsoft and served as a senior creative director, initially avoiding work on 343’s Halo to focus on shaping franchise strategy for Microsoft Studios titles. He returned to the franchise in 2020 as campaign project leader and later creative director, overseeing Halo Infinite. He rejoined Xbox Publishing earlier this year at the same time Microsoft announced layoffs of 10,000 employees, including 343 employees. Staten also wrote several Halo universe novels.
Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find him on Twitter @duckvalentine.