Halo 5
Halo 5 began preproduction in 2012 under the name “Halo Next”. During this time, the design team was split into three core groups (named Human, Covenant, and Forerunner) to prototype different gameplay and encounter space ideas simultaneously. During this time, I worked on various ideas and mechanics, from a giant Brute Pirate Airship that players would have to fly up to and blow up (an idea that would grow and change into the Covenant Kracken - a massive tenticle-clad moving air fortress that players must board and destroy), to a hidden Covenant base in the middle of the ocean during a severe storm, with high winds that would throw around dynamic objects and effect grenade throws (This would ultimately grow into the mission “Battle of Sunaion”, though the high winds mechanic would ultimately be cut).
Jayce Diaz and TJ Perillo on 343’s “The Sprint” Documentary series discussing the early stages of “Battle of Sunaion”. Jayce was the main designer on the mission and location, handling blockout and encounter deisgn, scripting, and iteration based on feedback.
(Skip to 7:20 for the Sunaion content, which shows early prototype ideas)
During production of Halo 5, I was responsible for multiple levels and missions, many of which would change or be cut entirely due to drastic pivots in the projects direction. However, the “Tsunami Station” location and it’s unique layout proved to be too strong to kill, and survived multiple story and direction revisions. It later became known as “The Battle of Sunaion” and even went on to become the E3 stage showcase for 2015! For this campaign mission, I really wanted to give the players a playground to really use their new player movement abilities, of which there are several. That’s why in this mission, you’ll find plenty of verticality and places to climb, lots of Ground Pound opportunities, long paths to use shoulder bash, and multiple objectives that encourage players to separate and take on challenges as they see fit. I also took over the mission “Glassed” in the middle of production from another designer, and continued iteration on environment and encounter design.
I brought all of my work past content complete before my contract was reaching it’s end with 343. I was a contract designer for four years straight, working alongside FTEs on vertical slices, concept pitches, documentation, design explorations, e3 demos, and so much more. I loved my time at 343, and still consider the people there close friends.