Hunt the Truth
A promotional audio series for Halo 5: Guardians.
Hunt the Truth was a fictional audio series and alternate reality game used to promote *Halo 5: Guardians*. It was developed by the Ayzenberg Group and produced through a collaboration between Xbox, 343 Industries, and TwoFifteen McCann. The cast included Keegan-Michael Key and Mark Hamill.
The project served as a marketing campaign for *Halo 5: Guardians* and incorporated an alternate reality game. A previous *Halo* promotional effort, for *Halo 2*, had also featured an alternate reality game called *I Love Bees*. The show’s format was modeled after the podcast *Serial*; its creators studied the specific microphones used by NPR to prepare for production.
The first season launched on March 22, 2015, with new episodes released weekly over 12 weeks. Noah Eichen served as creative director, and the story was written by Eichen, Andrew Volpe, and Ian Tornay. The series was distributed on Tumblr, iTunes, and SoundCloud. The second season, which featured Mark Hamill, premiered on September 22, 2015.
The cast included Alan Tudyk, Bruce Thomas, Cobie Smulders, Janina Gavankar, Jennifer Hale, Jerry Trainor, Keegan-Michael Key, Kumail Nanjiani, Laura Bailey, Mark Hamill, Mark Rolston, Peter Serafinowicz, Phil LaMarr, Rosa Salazar, Stacy Keach, Steve Blum, Tamara Taylor, Tara Strong, Travis Willingham, Troy Baker, Vanessa Marshall, and William Salyers.
The first season attracted over 6.7 million listeners and ranked in the top 1% of podcasts on iTunes in 2015, according to *Time* magazine. It was also listed among Apple iTunes’ top shows that year.
- Creator
- Ayzenberg Group
- Producers
- Xbox, 343 Industries, TwoFifteen McCann
- Starring
- Keegan-Michael Key, Mark Hamill
- First season debut
- March 22, 2015
- Second season debut
- September 22, 2015
- Format
- Audio series with alternate reality game
Lore & Background
The show debuted on March 22, 2015, and released episodes weekly for 12 weeks. It was created by Xbox's social agency Ayzenberg Group and produced in partnership between Xbox, 343 Industries, and TwoFifteen McCann. The creative director was Noah Eichen, and the story was written by Noah Eichen, Andrew Volpe, and Ian Tornay. The series was released on Tumblr, iTunes, and SoundCloud.
The second season debuted on September 22, 2015, and starred Mark Hamill. The show was done in a similar format to Serial; the creators researched what types of microphones NPR uses for their shows in preparation. Halo previously did a promotional campaign for Halo 2 that also had an alternate reality game called I Love Bees.
Reader's Guide
Hunt the Truth served as a significant promotional campaign for Halo 5: Guardians, expanding the game's narrative through an audio drama and alternate reality game. Its first season attracted over 6.7 million listeners and reached the top 1% of podcasts on iTunes in 2015 according to Time Magazine. The show was included in the top shows on Apple iTunes in 2015. The series featured a large cast including Alan Tudyk, Cobie Smulders, Janina Gavankar, Jennifer Hale, Jerry Trainor, Kumail Nanjiani, Laura Bailey, Mark Rolston, Peter Serafinowicz, Phil LaMarr, Rosa Salazar, Stacy Keach, Steve Blum, Tamara Taylor, Tara Strong, Travis Willingham, Troy Baker, and Vanessa Marshall. Its legacy lies in demonstrating how a franchise can use serialized audio storytelling and interactive elements to deepen fan engagement, following the precedent set by the Halo 2 alternate reality game I Love Bees.
More in Characters & Spartans
Elsewhere in Halo
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced