Although Halo: Campaign Evolved received a generally positive reception, some fans and industry experts believe it fell short of the standards currently expected from remakes of iconic games.

Recently, reports have surfaced detailing internal issues at Halo Studios and its leader, Pierre Hintze, as well as new information about the development of the remake of the original game.

One of these reports revealed that the game’s development involved as many as 15 external teams. But is that number cause for concern?

Halo: Campaign Evolved required up to 15 external teams during development

According to a new report from Rebs Gaming, an enthusiast of the iconic Xbox franchise, the development of Halo: Campaign Evolved relied on external studios, meaning it was not developed entirely in-house by Halo Studios.

Based on an analysis of the game’s credits, 15 development studios contributed to its creation, with each one handling specific areas. They are:

  • A Rival
  • FX Chamber
  • Devoted Studios
  • DIGIC
  • Keywords Studios
  • Sperasoft
  • Snowed In Studios
  • SkyBox Labs
  • Sprung Studios
  • Virtuos
  • Sparx
  • Ninja Theory
  • Turn 10 Studios
  • Rare
  • Abstraction

The revelation that Halo: Campaign Evolved received support from third-party developers could generate some controversy, particularly because of certain details that, according to some fans and even Marcus Lehto, co-creator of the franchise, are incorrect. However, this type of approach is more common than it might seem.

Reseña de Halo: Campaign Evolved

Video game development relies on third-party studios, even for ambitious projects

Although a major AAA game is usually associated with a particular studio, the reality is that development often relies on outsourcing for specific areas. There are even companies that do not develop games themselves, but instead specialize in particular aspects of production as their business model.

According to estimates based on reports, credit analyses and development documents, a large-scale AAA game such as Halo: Campaign Evolved can require between 20 and 30 external studios to handle specific parts of production.

In that sense, if the credits list 15 external studios, it could actually be considered a relatively low number of third-party developers, suggesting that a significant portion of the game’s development was handled in-house.