Longtime Halo dev Frank O'Connor may have left 343 Industries

After 19 years of Mister Chief, it appears that Frank O'Connor has left 343 Industries, Microsoft, and the Halo franchise.

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If you're a longtime Halo fan, then you probably know who Frank O'Connor (aka Franklez) is. O'Connor joined Bungie shortly after Halo 2 launched in 2004, becoming one of the most recognized faces at the company as the forward-facing community manager of the Halo franchise. Throughout the years, O'Connor has showed up in various Halo vidocs and created the unofficial Mister Chief mascot that poked fun at the serious tone of the franchise. After nearly 4 years as a community manager, O'Connor spent nearly 20 years as a creative director on Halo, assisting with major mainline releases like Halo 4, Halo 5 Guardians, and Halo Infinite.

Now it looks like O'Connor has left 343 Industries and Halo altogether. O'Connor recently updated his LinkedIn profile that lists his time as a franchise creative director at Microsoft has ended. The profile now lists that O'Connor has been a "franchise creative director" in the same Greater Seattle area for 2 months. O'Connor's departure has not been confirmed and it's possible this LinkedIn update is a mistake.

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O'Connor's departure punctuates a tumultuous time for Xbox, Halo, and developer 343 Industries. The studio has suffered various departures of key creative talent over the last few years, both before and after Halo Infinite's release. The most shocking departure was when 343 Industries studio founder Bonnie Ross left in September 2022.

It's unclear where O'Connor is now, and it's worth noting that the creative's role at Microsoft came with controversy. O'Connor had been banned from forums like ResetERA and NeoGAF for allegedly making racist jokes.

Numerous ex-Halo and ex-343i developers have actually created their own studios, including Jerry Hook, one of the most pivotal people behind Xbox LIVE and monetization expert on Halo Infinite.

Major 343 Industries departures

• May 2017 - Studio head Dan Ayoub leaves (worked on Halo for 7 years, executive producer on Reach)
• October 2020 - Studio head Chris Lee leaves
• January 2022 - Halo Infinite lead narrative designer Aaron Linde leaves
• March 2022 - Senior multiplayer systems designer Andrew Witts leaves
• May 2022 - Jerry Hook, who helped design online systems for Halo 4, Halo 5, and Halo Infinite, leaves
• July 2022 - Four former Halo Infinite devs and 343 Industries employees (including Jerry Hook) form new studio Jar of Sparks for NetEase
• July 2022 - Nicolas Bouvier aka "Sparth," who helped lead artistic vision for Halo 4, Halo 5, and Halo Infinite via concept art and art direction, leaves the studio
• July 2022 - Multiplayer designer Tyler Ensrude leaves the company after 5 years of designing maps for Halo Infinite
• September 2022 - 343 Industries founder Bonnie Ross leaves the studio after 15 years of Halo due to medical concerns
• April 2023 - Head of Creative Joseph Staten leaves Microsoft following his work on Halo Infinite
• April 2023 - Frank O'Connor updates his LinkedIn profile and appears to confirm departure from 343i after 22 years of Halo