Bungie confirms devastating layoffs in Destiny 2, Marathon teams as Sony casts dark shadow

Bungie has announced a workforce reduction following the conclusion of its work on Destiny 2 earlier this month, confirming that the decision was driven by Sony and will also impact some Marathon developers and affiliated support studios.

“We have decided to reduce Bungie’s workforce,” declared Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Hermen Hulst in a recent update, underscoring the company’s role in the move. He said the cuts would affect a substantial portion of employees, including “most of the Destiny team and some Marathon team members,” as well as Sony teams that provide support to Bungie.

Bungie’s own statement mirrored this tone, noting that “as the leaders of Bungie, past and present, we recognize Destiny 2 fell short of expectations these past several years.” The developer explained that it could no longer sustain its previous scale after the end of Destiny 2 development, with only a handful of projects still in early incubation.

Rumors of the impending cuts surfaced immediately after the announcement of Destiny 2’s final update, Monument of Triumph. Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier reported that the studio had no plans for a Destiny 3 at that time, making it difficult to justify the existing workforce. Forbes’ Paul Tassi estimated that the reduction could range from 40 to 55 percent of the studio, though the exact number of affected developers remains unclear.

When the latest round of layoffs hit, the impact was nothing short of devastating. Monument of Triumph, a heartfelt homage to Destiny 2’s core strengths, managed to attract a larger initial player base than the ill‑fated Edge of Fate expansion, which had introduced widely criticized changes. Yet despite the studio’s roster of skilled developers, it was unable to extricate itself from a largely self‑inflicted mess.

Even with talent on hand, the studio’s internal turmoil proved too great to overcome, leaving the community to wonder whether the creative spark could ever be reignited.

Both Sony and Bungie have clarified that the developer’s present focus is on Marathon and a slate of incubation projects. This precarious stance is risky, given that the extraction shooter’s player retention is already fragile, and any new titles in development are likely to take an extended period before delivering tangible results—Marathon’s own turbulent journey is a stark reminder of that reality.

Destiny 2 is slated to receive its final bug‑fix patch next week, according to the team’s official social media channels. Beyond that, the game’s future remains uncertain; some lingering issues may not be resolved in time, potentially leading to the disabling of certain items. A prime example is the Divinity glitch in Pantheon’s Insurrection Prime, which allows Guardians to bypass the boss’s immune shield—this could result in the complete removal of Divinity from that activity.

Adding to the emotional toll, community manager Dylan “dmg04” Gafner’s response to a fan’s inquiry may have amplified the sense of heartbreak to an unprecedented level.

We’ve been humbled beyond words by the incredible support you’ve shown our game and studio. Please don’t blame yourselves or think you should have done more—sometimes things simply unfold this way. No matter what the future holds, the memories we’ve created together will always stay with us. Thank you for everything.