Layoffs at Bungie; New DLC for Destiny 2 and Marathon Delayed
Bungie is another studio that has reduced its workforce. According to reports, the Destiny 2: The Final Shape DLC and the upcoming shooter Marathon have also been delayed.
2023 is the best year in a long time in terms of launches, but at the same time one of the worst in terms of layoffs - more than 6,000 people have already lost their jobs in the gaming industry. The latest development studio to cut jobs is Bungie.
- The case was first reported by Jason Schreier from Bloomberg.
- For now, we do not know the exact number of employees laid off.
- However, the reductions are likely to be substantial, as Schreier's sources say they entailed or are the result of the delayed release of the The Final Shape DLC for Destiny 2 (from February to June 2024). An even bigger delay affected the online shooter Marathon, for which we will wait until 2025.
- It is also possible that composer Michael Salvatori, who has been creating music for Bungie games since the days of Myth: The Fallen Lords, may have been laid off. This information has caused a fury among fans, but it is very possible that it is misguided. There are many indications that the artist was not fired - he simply made the decision to retire on his own. This seems likely, as it is hard to imagine that any downsizing would affect a person so important to Bungie games.
This year has been a period of mass layoffs. These have affected, among others, PlayStation Studios, Telltale Games, Team17, Epic Games, Striking Distance, CD Projekt RED, Niantic or Firaxis, as well as developers employed by teams owned by the companies Microsoft or Embracer.
Nevertheless, the downsizing of Bungie's staff is somewhat of a surprise. When in January last year the studio was bought out by Sony, the Japanese conglomerate was said to have spent $1.2 billion to make sure employees did not leave the team.
Bungie is currently mainly involved in the development of Destiny 2. The game uses a live-service model and requires a huge amount of work to provide players with major additions and regular updates with new content within seasons. In recent years, it was clear that the devs needed more hands on deck. Expansions have been delayed, with the latest, in the form of Lightfall, turning out to be a big disappointment, among other things, due to its modest content.
Upcoming Marathon will also require constant development. So it's hard not to question whether layoffs are really a good idea when Bungie has to develop two projects like this in parallel.
