Bungie developers talked about what led to the studio's new round of development layoffs earlier this week, which had been reported planned for some time.
Talking with Bloombergcurrent and former staff say Bungie “grew too fast” and overextended itself with potential projects. They also invested a lot of their own anger about the CEO Pete Parsonswho reportedly “has failed to take responsibility” for his role in these cuts.
Following these new layoffs, several former Bungie employees (and Destiny 2 players) actively urged Parsons to resignclaiming that he was responsible for the studio's “over-ambitious” failures.
According to the outlet, Bungie received an influx of cash after Sony acquired in 2022. The developer immediately got to work incubating various projects, including a rumored mobile version of Destiny 2 and remakes of his old games.
One notable project was “Payback”, described as a cooperative spin-off influenced by Genshin Impact AND Fame of warThe title was cancelled in June in order to work on the revival of the mining shooter Marathon, now aims for a 2025 launch.
“Payback” was reportedly directed by a veteran Destiny 2 co-director Luke Smith and VP of franchise Mark Noseworthy. Both had been with Bungie for over a decade and left after the project’s cancellation, along with several high-level executives.
What Happened and Will Happen with Bungie
While the video game industry was laying off thousands of people In 2023, Bungie faced more problems. Destiny 2: Fall of light disappointed commercially, and the studio subsequently delayed The final form following his first reductions in October.
The final form has been around for about two months, but a recent company meeting says it has missed its sales targets. In fact, sales of each Destiny 2 expansion have rejected every year, although it is unclear when this starting point occurred.
As of this writing, it's unclear what Bungie's new cuts mean for Destiny 2 AND MarathonThe former reportedly suffered heavy losses in the narrative, audio, and support departments.
It is also claimed that the sci-fi shooter will do away with annual expansions in favor of small, free content drops to attract new players and overhauls to long-existing modes.
Bloomberg's full Bungie report can be read Here.