Following the reveal of Halo: Campaign Evolved, which confirmed that the longtime Xbox-exclusive series would be coming to PlayStation, GameStop posted a lengthy statement about it being the end of the console wars. The White House, of all entities, responded with an AI-generated photo of Donald Trump in Spartan armor, as if to depict him as the protagonist in Halo, Master Chief. Shortly after that, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) used more Halo imagery to promote its own political agenda, and has even followed it up with a similar post co-opting Lord of the Rings.
And the DHS has made it clear that it will not stop there, which we know thanks to a report from independent journalist Alyssa Mercante, who obtained a statement from the DHS after inquiring about its use of Halo imagery. At the time of her inquiry, the Lord of the Rings post had not been made, though it would go out shortly after this statement was delivered:
"We will reach people where they are with content they can relate to and understand, whether that be Halo, Pokémon, Lord of The Rings, or any other medium. DHS remains laser focused on bringing awareness to the flood of crime that criminal illegal aliens have inflicted on our country. We aren’t slowing down. - DHS SPOX"
Microsoft has yet to make an official comment on the DHS using Halo to promote its own political agenda, nor has Amazon, which currently holds the rights to The Lord of the Rings, made a statement regarding whether the use of these images was approved.
Both Amazon and Microsoft, if they were so inclined, could have the images taken down, and while the lack of any statement doesn't explicitly confirm they agree with the posts in question and how they are being used, not saying anything at the very least admits that neither party will stop the DHS from continuing to use franchises like Halo and The Lord of the Rings in the future.
Individual Halo creators have made statements, however, with Marcus Lehto, a co-creator of Halo and the lead designer of the character Master Chief, told Game File that "It really makes me sick seeing Halo co-opted like this."
Jaime Griesemer, a lead designer of the original Halo games at Bungie, added, "Halo is a cultural icon and like anything with cultural capital, it is going to be used by politicians and brands and anyone else looking for relevancy. Usually, I take it as a compliment to Halo’s continuing legacy."
"Using Halo imagery in a call to ‘destroy’ people because of their immigration status goes way too far, and ought to offend every Halo fan, regardless of political orientation. I personally find it despicable. The Flood are evil space zombie parasites and are not an allegory to any group of people."
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