Update: Journalist Jason Schreier reports that it's around 40 employees moving from Bungie to form Sony's new studio, not the previously reported 75 staff.
Original Article: The complicated news coming out of Bungie today confirms that there’ll be a new first-party team established under the PS Studios umbrella, as one of the label’s incubated projects is being spun-off. Around 75 employees will switch to the developer, which doesn’t currently have a name. The firm will sit alongside other North American outfits, like Naughty Dog and Sucker Punch.
As part of a blog post, CEO Pete Parsons explained: “We are working with PS Studios leadership to spin out one of our incubation projects – an action game set in a brand new science-fantasy universe – to form a new studio within PS Studios to continue its promising development.”
It’s a dramatic day for Bungie, as it’s laid off around 220 employees in order to get the studio’s financials back under control. A further 155 staffers will be repositioned to new roles within Sony. And then the aforementioned 75 developers will be transitioned to this new PS Studios developer.
There are no further details about the game it’s making or which platforms it’ll be targeting, although you can safely assume PS5 will be its primary location. Back when Sony acquired Bungie, it made a point of stressing that its software would remain multiformat; it’s unclear whether those same obligations will apply to this new studio, despite its origins.
[source bungie.net, via pushsquare.com]
Comments 35
Could have just waited for Bungie to collapse and then offered all these people jobs anyway. Doesn’t seem to have been the best business decision to buy out Bungie.
The multi platform agreement only pertains to Bungie not a brand new studio even if it was originally Bungie employees and the new studio is apart of PlayStation Studios so there's less than a 1% chance it shows up on Xbox, sides by the time the game comes out Xbox as a console won't exist anymore.
By the way, the project seems to be that "Gummy Bear" game: https://twitter.com/Bungie/status/1692594057594429472
"One of our favorite incubation projects is a team-based action game inspired by several genres in a brand-new, science-fantasy universe.
It draws inspiration from fighting games, platformers, MOBAs, life sims, and frog-type games, wrapped up in a lighthearted, comedic world."
@thefourfoldroot1 true, though hindsight is 20/20. Had Bungie performed better, it'd be considered a great acquisition, but alas.
Can't say I can really wrap my head around the Bungie deal fallout, but I'll take a new sci fi action game. Hopefully it's not too teeny/corny.
I will not hold my breath for this project, if you all don’t mind.
God how many employees did they have?! 😳 and how many are left after this?
Hopefully this action game is a single player project.
@thefourfoldroot1 tax write off, maybe?
@ED_209 Interesting info, thanks for sharing!
@ED_209 If thats true then I hope its incubating in a different direction. If its comedic lightheartedness is anything like what we're seeing in Concord they shouldn't waste the money.
@Ken_Kaniff They had 1,300 employees.
Way this generation is going, more likely this is a PS6 game than a PS5..
@naruball
Indeed, although the writing was on the wall if you ask Destiny Fans.
@get2sammyb It seems crazy to me that Destiny on it's own generated enough money to pay for that many employees. Were they that large when they left Microsoft? Maybe they got overambitious in expanding the studio.
Yaaaaaay another Western Developer........😑
So another lame doa live service scheme...
@itsfoz Potentially, yes.
It's of course sad to see what has happened with Bungie. However, perhaps this could be a potential phenix that rises out of the ashes. I hope so. I do miss the old Bungie so maybe this new team will be more like the old Bungie and less like the new.
Firesprite, Bungie, Haven, the other fire team, are they even making games. They bought them and feels like they wont even get a game out this generation
"Born out of Bungie"
Born? More like ripped out the burning corpse on the funeral pyre. 🔥
Bungie stretches and contracts—that’s what a Bungie does. It’s their destiny. It stinks that they laid off so many employees only to create a new studio. One would think the employees could’ve been re-purposed/re-assigned without upending and impacting their personal lives. Companies don’t live to support their employees, though. They live and thrive through creativity, production, profit and efficiency. Efficiency often brings about cuts. Companies often take the position that there’s no need for 3 employees if 1 can be assigned and required to do all 3 functions. 🙁
Well good luck for the new team. But this feels like Sony taken what's good left from the acquisition to created a new Bungie, while they let old Bungie running its course with Destiny 2 and Marathon to the point they can safely decide to closed the studio with very little damage to their finance.
Sony will be praying that it is a gaas giant rather than the black hole that Concord is forecast to be.
@RagnarLothbrok Firesprite just released Horizon VR last year and it received well. Now they're working on new games.
Firewalk is working on Concord and the game will released this August. Haven Studio is working on Fairgame$ but doesn't have release date.
@LowDefAl should clarify that i mean a PS5 game not VR.
Bungie must be one of the worst buys ever in gaming. Still can’t believe what Sony paid for them but I hope they right the ship and make me change my opinion!
@BearsEatBeets That why Bungie kept jumping around from investor to investor. They went from Activision to Net ease to Sony. But you need that many employees to keep a live service game running, to pump major DLC out every year.
@RagnarLothbrok I didn't have to look far to find this....
https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2024/07/horizon-vr-dev-still-recruiting-for-its-big-budget-ps5-exclusive?s=09
@naruball
That is easy to say. Destiny 2 was all but abandoned. What was their path forward?
If you can't think of any, take a moment and appreciate the sheer incompetence by Jimmy R.
@EfYI no it was not. And the last expansion proved otherwise.
They didn't acquire them just for Destiny 2. That's why the paid them so much. To make sure they don't quit after the acquisition.
@naruball
Let's say that it got revived and had decent sales (I will assume as much since you don't consider Destiny dead).
Let's say that 4 billion is spent on having *a little sum of money coming in from the dying throes that a game with a last DLC represents. They can maybe sustain a much smaller team working with the game for two years before new cuts are made.
*40 people start off what can become a Sci-fi game that will have a very good shooter engine to carry over from Destiny.
I don't see the advantage in their timing, it gets worse with hindsight. So, as a deal goes. Not the best.
@Frmknst
Exactly! I’m fed-up with this so called sci-fantacy titles.
Not really a fan of sci fi.
@thefourfoldroot1 concorde team is next on the chopping block.
anyone who thought that game was worthy enough to have it's own controller should be kicked out.
dragon age team is next for ea.
@Sequel you know it’ll be. welcome to the post-fortnite era
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