343 Industries has lost another veteran staffer. Designer David Ellis, who has been with the developer since 2010, announced his leave from the Halo Infinite studio.
"Friday [June 2] was my last day at 343 and Halo," wrote Ellis on Twitter. "After more than a decade with the Chief, I’m ready for a different challenge."
Ellis first joined 343 in 2010, where one of his duties was to provide design feedback on Bungie's Halo: Reach and 343's Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary. From 2012's Halo 4 and up through 2021's Halo Infinite, he did design work for the multiplayer and campaign portions for 343's mainline entries.
His departure from 343 comes months after fellow Halo veterans such as creative director Joe Staten and studio founder Bonnie Ross have left the developer.
Rumors of the series' fate circulated after Microsoft conducted mass layoffs across its entire company. Along with 343, other first-party game studios such as Gears of War developer The Coalition were affected.
The studio later confirmed it would keep making Halo games for the foreseeable future. Even so, Microsoft reportedly told 343 that it was open to having third-party developers create projects for the franchise.
BIG NEWWS! After 13+ years(!), Friday was my last day at 343 and @Halo. Being a part of every Halo shooter since Reach was a dream come true, but after more than a decade with the Chief, I’m ready for a different challenge. Stay tuned, I‘ll be sharing what’s next soon. pic.twitter.com/5QI5pMcgv1
— David Ellis (@DavidEllis) June 5, 2023