A former Bungie developer who worked on the Halo series is running for political office in Nevada as a representative of the Republican party. Having previously worked on the overwhelming majority of Bungie’s earlier games, as well as Destiny, before moving to Halo 4, Halo 5, and The Master Chief Collection by 343 Industries, the legendary developer says that family values in the United States are being “eroded,” and that the federal government should “be responsible for is the security of our borders.”
A composer whose tracks are heard across the entire Halo series, Martin O’Donnell has also created music for the original Destiny as well as the earlier Bungie FPS game Oni and the Myth series. O’Donnell also founded the studio Highwire Games, but has since retired. Now, the former Halo dev is hoping to become the Republican candidate for the third congressional district in Nevada.
“I’m tired of seeing the leaders of our country being influenced by the toxic divisions that are tearing apart our families and society,” O’Donell says. “It’s time for me to step up and do my civic duty. To give back and try and change things for the better. It’s easy to look at the economy and realize that something has gone horribly wrong. Working people, the middle class, and small businesses have been losing ground over the past 20 years. To everyone who works and is trying to do the right thing for their family, to everyone who is young and wonders why their lives are worse than their parents: you are not wrong.
“And yet, who have we allowed to have the most influence over our government? Big corporate executives and big union bosses. Big tech, big pharma, big media, big whatever – all trying to control big government in Washington DC. This needs to stop. Our government spends money on the wrong things and spends way too much.”
O’Donell has started a website where potential supporters can make donations and sign up to become members of “Marty’s Army.” Nevada’s third congressional district covers the area south of Las Vegas itself, including Henderson, Boulder City, and Clark County. It is currently represented by Susie Lee, a Democrat.
“One thing the federal government should certainly be responsible for is the security of our borders,” O’Donell continues. “Instead, we see millions of people coming in without any accounting for who they are, what they intend to do, or what they’re bringing with them. And they’re being given access to all sorts of handouts at our expense. At a minimum, the federal government and the state governments should be working together to enforce existing laws and secure the border. Seeing our government at war with itself is unacceptable.
“The sad reality is that many children in our country are suffering. Years of ridiculing and demeaning old-fashioned ‘family values’ have taken a toll. Our society’s strength, fundamentally linked to the vitality of the family structure, has been eroded. I want to champion the traditional family as critical for a child’s development and success. I’m ready to go to DC and see if I can help bring back sanity and civility to the public discourse on these issues and all the other issues that face our great nation. We need bold leaders for such a time as this.”
The release cadence for new Halo Infinite material recently changed, perhaps signaling that a new Halo game is on its way soon. Meanwhile, an independent developer has released an unofficial Lego Halo spinoff.
If you’re a big Halo fan, you might want to try some of the other best co-op games, or maybe the greatest multiplayer games available right now on PC.
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