Bungie Announces Major Layoffs After Ending Destiny 2
▼ Summary
– Bungie announced a new round of layoffs to reorganize the studio, with no specific numbers initially revealed.
– Sony’s Hermen Hulst confirmed the layoffs include a significant number of employees, most from the Destiny team and some from Marathon.
– Bungie cited Destiny 2 falling short of expectations and future projects still in early development as reasons for the reduction.
– A WARN filing by Sony indicates approximately 292 employees will be laid off from Bungie’s Bellevue headquarters.
– Marathon, released in March, has struggled in the live-service space, but Sony says it remains an important part of the portfolio.
With the conclusion of Destiny 2, Bungie is facing another significant round of layoffs. The studio confirmed the news in a statement on X, explaining that “we are announcing a reduction in force as we reorganize Bungie.” While exact numbers were not initially disclosed, Hermen Hulst, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment’s Studio Business Group, later clarified that the cuts would affect “a significant number of employees, including most of the Destiny team and some Marathon team members.”
Bungie acknowledged that Destiny 2 has underperformed in recent years. “We recognize Destiny 2 fell short of expectations these past several years,” the studio’s statement read. “Following our final content update to Destiny 2, and with our future projects still in early incubation, we unfortunately could not continue operating at our previous size.” That final update arrived earlier this month on June 9th.
Hulst emphasized that the decision came after careful consideration. “We explored multiple alternatives before concluding that a reduction was necessary to align the studio’s resources with its current priorities and long-term goals,” he said.
According to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) filed by Sony, approximately 292 employees will be let go from Bungie’s headquarters in Bellevue, Washington.
The studio’s extraction shooter Marathon, which launched in March, has struggled to gain traction in the crowded live-service market. Despite this, Hulst noted that Marathon “remains an important part of our portfolio.”
In its statement, Bungie indicated that more details about upcoming projects would be shared eventually, but “today is not that day.”
Update, June 25th: This article has been updated with information from a WARN filed by Sony.
(Source: The Verge)
