Halo Veteran Joseph Staten Returns To Microsoft, Halo Art Director Kenneth Scott Is Relocating To California

As Microsoft’s 343 Industries studio is busy preparing their next game for Xbox One console with transition of platform and technology, they have made some notable additions and changes to their team. Tim Longo from LucasArts has joined us Halo team as the creative director. Tim carries with him almost two decades of game development experience during which he has worked on titles such as Tomb Raider, Star Wars: Republic Commando and most recently the unreleased FPS, Star Wars: First Assault.

Joseph Staten who worked on several earlier Halo titles when it was developed by Bungie is now returning to Microsoft. He was the lead writer and cinematics director for Halo, Halo 2 and Halo 3: ODST.

Microsoft provided the following statement on him,

We’re thrilled to welcome Joseph back to the Microsoft Studios family. Over the past 15 years at Bungie, Joseph has been a key creative force behind some of gaming’s most iconic and celebrated franchises, including “Myth II,” “ONI” and virtually every “Halo” game leading up to “Halo: Reach.” Most recently, he spent the last four years working as a writer and creative director on the highly anticipated “Destiny.” As a senior creative director, Joseph will help create the world’s best entertainment on Xbox.

As a senior creative director, Joseph will help create the world’s best entertainment on Xbox, as well as help shape our franchise strategy for some Microsoft Studios titles. He’ll also be one of our leading ambassadors to the game development community, building on his many years of experience and relationships with developers and fans. We’re excited to share more about Joseph’s role in the future.

On a sad note, Kenneth Scott will step down from his position of Art Director as he has made the decision to move to California. He will continue working with Microsoft remotely in his new role as Visual Design Consultant. Nicolas “Sparth” Bouvier is taking over for Kenneth as Art Director. Nicolas has been with the studio since the beginning as our Lead Concept Artist and he has worked closely with Kenneth over the past five years to define the visual language for 343’s Halo.