Halo 5: Guardians is doing away with splitscreen, a feature that is basically synonymous with Halo. This announcement drew heat from some fans, and now developer 343 Industries has responded.

　　In a post on Halo Waypoint, the developer said dropping split-screen was an incredibly tough decision, but explained that it was necessary to provide the best experience to players.

　　"The decision to remove split-screen support from Halo 5: Guardians was one of the most difficult ones we've ever had to make as a studio," executive producer Josh Holmes said. "We know that for many of our fans, Halo has meant playing together with friends in the same room. We all have great memories of past Halo split-screen multiplayer matches.

　　"To move Halo's gameplay forward and deliver a true next-gen experience, tough choices had to be made," he added. "Our decision was driven by a desire for scale, fidelity, and focus to ensure that we would deliver the best quality experience possible."

　　Holmes on to say that Halo 5's "massive scale environments," better visuals, and improved AI might not be able to be realized if split-screen was in the mix.

　　"Many of our ambitious goals for Halo 5 would be compromised in a split-screen setting and the time spent optimizing and addressing split-screen-specific issues would take focus from building other parts of the game," he said. "Game development is a balancing act of resources, time, and technology, and in this case we made the tough decision to sacrifice something that's been near and dear to us all."

　　The Halo 5 release date is set for October 27 exclusively for Xbox One.

　　How do you feel about Halo 5 not having any split-screen support? Let us know in the comments below.

　　You need a javascript enabled browser to watch videos.

　　Click To Unmute

　　Halo 5: Guardians - The Making of "Raid on Apex 7" Warzone Map Reveal

　　GameSpot's Top 10 Games of 2023

　　Thompson: The Pop Culture Icon’s Strange Legacy - LoadoutFirearms Expert’s FAVORITE Weapons Of 2023State Of Gaming Handhelds In 2023How Lies of P Cracked the Souls GenreLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Ichiban Kasuga Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Saeko Mukoda Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Chitose Fujinomiya Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Eric Tomizawa Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Kazuma Kiryu Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Koichi Adachi Character Spotlight TrailerLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealth - Official Yu Nanba Character Spotlight Trailer

　　Share

　　LinkEmbed

　　Size:640 × 360480 × 270

　　Start at: End at: Autoplay Loop

　　Want us to remember this setting for all your devices?

　　Sign up or Sign in now!

　　Please use a html5 video capable browser to watch videos.

　　This video has an invalid file format.

　　00:00:00

　　HTML5

　　Auto HD High Low

　　Report a problem

　　Sorry, but you can't access this content!

Please enter your date of birth to view this video

　　By clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's

　　Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

　　enter