Halo Infinite

Last week we announced that Justin Robey would be joining us at the studio in a newly created position, Director of Player Voice. He joined me on the 343 Social Stream (you can catch the rebroadcast here) and we talk about his role, how he got in the industry, and plenty more. Now I think the only remaining thing for him to do is introduce himself and his role in a Community Update. Robey, want to tell us a little bit about yourself and what you'll be doing here at 343?

Thanks John. What a great question. It’s funny, since the announce of me joining the team about a week ago, I have gotten to see what everyone else’s perspective is on what my role will be and their expectations on what this means for the game. Some feel I should give them my number and take calls day and night, others think I literally decide who gets to play the voice of Master Chief (I guess that’s a way to interpret Director of Player Voice). The majority of the community though, understands fundamentally that I am on the team, as a director/leader, to represent the diverse group of players who interact with Halo now, in the past and in the future. Regardless of people’s perception, what has been energizing is how excited the community is about having someone represent them for Halo Infinite.

The Director of Player Voice role is very multifaceted, it’s about becoming a unifying voice that takes in all the different ways we gather player feedback. That means working with Community, Esports, Flighting, Test and the multitude of other avenues we used to collect feedback from the player. Then using those perspectives to ensure the player is heard and represented in the design and production of the game as it moves through development. It’s also about ensuring that the game is verified against actual players in both very public and very behind closed doors methods, depending on what avenue make the most sense for the game and where it is at in development. This role represents a shift that has been happening in 343 for a while, and I know many of you who have been following the work “we” have been doing on Halo The Master Chief Collection. It’s critical to our success both as a studio and for Halo Infinite.

Now I know words are cheap and I have seen some of that feedback already, so it’s about showing you, and we will. So stay tuned and you will start to see ways in which you can find ways to engage and ensure your feedback is heard. In the mean time I have been watching your videos on YouTube, hanging out in the Halo Discord server, reading threads on Waypoint and Reddit and of course all the feedback I am seeing on Twitter and social media. It’s not going to be perfect, we are going to make mistakes, but you guys are a critical part of making Halo Infinite great. That’s the part that excites me!

So, thank you for the warm welcome and now it’s time for us to get to work!

Thanks for jumping in and giving us even more insight as to how you're approaching the role. I'm ready to get back to work too!