Perhaps much to the surprise of fans, Halo developer 343 Industries has defended the choice to remove Master Chief’s helmet in the new series. At the end of the first episode, Master Chief removes his helmet and reveals his face to a child. For those who have never played Halo, this may not mean anything, but to fans this was huge. Master Chief’s face has never been revealed prior to this, even though he does take his helmet off in the games. His face is always obscured or only small details are shown, ensuring his identity is left ambiguous. Many have used this as a way to immerse themselves as Master Chief and project themselves onto the character, but the show, as a non-interactive piece of media, has gone another direction.
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In a lengthy new blog post, 343 Industries’ community manager Alex Wakeford defended the controversial choice to remove Master Chief’s helmet in the Halo series. The developer noted that those who have read some of the books and paid careful attention to the games will know Master Chief has removed his helmet before. Although the games have always largely kept his helmet on, he is a fleshed out character with a voice and personality, meaning he’s not a faceless silent protagonist. 343 goes on to say that he removes his helmet to prove to the child that he’s not just a killing machine, he’s human and vulnerable.ย
“A moment like this is not a plot point or even explicitly a ‘reveal’ of what he looks like, but a means to tell his story,” wrote Wakeford. “It had to be a moment that was earned and meaningful. This is also part of why it happens in the first episode: it’s not a twist, it’s a mission statement.”
343 Industries inherited the Halo series after Halo: Reach, the last game in the series to be developed by creator Bungie. Although some of that original Halo team still exists within 343, there are lots of key developers like co-creator Marcus Lehto that have moved on. Whether or not all of those original team members would agree with the choice to remove Chief’s helmetย or 343’s assessment of it remains unknown.
What do you think of 343’s reasoning for Master Chief removing his helmet? Let me know in the comments below or hit me up on Twitter @Cade_Onder.
