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Update: In a statement provided to IGN by a 343 Industries spokesperson, the Halo Infinite developer refuted the claim in Thurott's report that the Halo TV show in the works at Showtime had a major impact on Infinite's development.
The spokesperson labeled Infinite and the TV show as "completely independent projects" whose development did not impact one another or prove a "distraction," as the original reports sources claimed.
"343 Industries has a devoted transmedia team that is working with Showtime on the creation and production of the Halo TV show. This group is separate from the Halo Infinite development team. These are two completely independent projects with dedicated teams and leadership that do not impact one another," the spokesperson said in a statement to IGN.
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A report has surfaced suggesting Halo Infinite's development and recent delay have been affected by outsourcing, with the upcoming Halo TV show also apparently a "significant distraction."
An investigative report into the "turbulent" development cycle of Halo Infinite from Thurrott alleges that a number of factors have contributed to the game's troubled development and eventual delay from Xbox Series X console launch into 2021.
One major factor in Infinite's delay supposedly stems from the fact that "a significant portion of the game is being outsourced to third-party contractors." This is standard practice in the games industry, especially in AAA, but in Infinite's case, the report suggests that the level of outsourcing has been unusually high, with "the coordination between the many different companies contributing to Infinite has been rough, at best."
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Thurrott's source claims that the outsourcing "was at a ratio higher than a typical studio undertakes during development," which has led to communication and collaboration headaches for 343 Industries. Apparently, the E3 2019 trailer for Halo Infinite was outsourced while the game was not in a playable state, which "over-sold expectations for Infinite's later demos." The report suggests that the marketing and engineering teams behind Halo Infinite "have been on two different planets," which has also led to issues in messaging the game.
The Thurrott report also dwells on the departure of high-profile creatives such as Tim Longo and Mary Olsen as a reason for the turmoil - both were creative directors who left 343 Industries in 2019. The recent rumour that the game was going to ship with multiplayer and campaign as separate entities is also corroborated, with the report suggesting that this came under consideration as a means to "meet the Holiday 2020 deadline."
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As well as the issues with outsourcing, one source told Thurrott that the long-gestating Halo TV series has "been a significant distraction for 343 management." According to the unnamed source, the show has been "taking their priority instead of focusing on making sure development progress is on the right path to reaching its targeted deadline."
For more on Halo Infinite, check out this episode of Next-Gen Console Watch 2020 where the team dig into the Halo Infinite delay, wondering how the Xbox Series X can compete without its flagship launch exclusive.
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Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.