Bungie Fires Half Studio After Destiny 2 Fallout

Following the announcement that Bungie’s flagship title, Destiny 2, would conclude active development, industry observers feared a bleak future for the once‑dominant studio. New reports now suggest that the company is poised to slash its workforce by half, casting doubt on its long‑term viability.

French journalist Sylvain Trinel, who shared his findings on X, revealed that Bungie plans a substantial downsizing, potentially terminating up to 50 % of its developers. “And if that weren’t enough, Bungie should expect massive layoffs this summer,” Trinel wrote, a statement that has sparked concern across the gaming community.

Trinel added, “I’m treading carefully, but I’m hearing talk of at least 50 % of the workforce affected (permanent or contract staff) following the end of Destiny 2 and the situation with Marathon.” This underscores the scale of the impending workforce overhaul and its potential ripple effects on future game development.

This outcome was hardly surprising. Destiny 2 had been underperforming for months before the announcement, and Marathon has struggled similarly. The latter’s development reportedly ran into the hundreds of millions, yet its player base hasn’t recouped that investment quickly enough. While I lauded Marathon for its artistic direction, narrative, visuals, and sound design upon launch, those strengths alone cannot sustain a niche title such as an extraction shooter.

Trinel revealed fresh insights today, asserting that a significant portion of PlayStation’s internal community remains perplexed by the executive decision to terminate Destiny 2.

He added that some insiders express a sense of “revenge,” noting that Sony’s leadership has attributed several shortcomings in its GaaS approach to Bungie.

Over recent years, Sony has aggressively invested in live‑service titles, a strategy that has drained substantial resources. Concord stands out as the most glaring case, reportedly eroding more than $200 million from the company’s bottom line.

It seems that both Marathon and Destiny 2 fell short of delivering a solid return on investment, with their hefty development budgets and extended production timelines ultimately proving costly for their publishers.