Halo Studios loses contract staff after Campaign Evolved launch, including a 6.5-year veteran

Halo Studios has cut an unspecified number of contract workers in the days following the launch of Halo: Campaign Evolved, with several staff posting about their departures on LinkedIn. A source familiar with the situation told Game Developer that the departures stem from "external contractor shifts" and that no full-time employees were laid off.

Producer Nick Treitman, who spent 6.5 years at the studio, wrote on LinkedIn: "After 6.5 years working on Halo and dodging just as many rounds of layoffs — it has finally caught up to me." Scrum master Paul Morris, who also worked on Campaign Evolved and has previous credits on The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered and Forza Motorsport 7, confirmed his own departure: "Today, I learned my time at Halo Studios will be coming to an end following the successful launch of our latest game." Both LinkedIn profiles list their roles as contract positions, suggesting Halo Studios chose not to renew those contracts post-launch rather than cutting full-time headcount.

The news lands in the middle of a brutal stretch for Microsoft's gaming division. In early July, Microsoft laid off around 1,600 workers across its studios, with Bethesda, Obsidian, id Software, ZeniMax, Double Fine, Arkane, Undead Labs, Compulsion, and Ninja Theory all affected. Contract non-renewals after a major release are a common industry practice, but the timing — on top of those broader cuts — makes the job market especially punishing for anyone now looking for work. Both Treitman and Morris acknowledged as much in their posts.

Rock Paper Shotgun says it has contacted Xbox for comment. Neither Microsoft nor Halo Studios has issued a public statement on the departures.