When PlayStation’s acquisition of Bungie was finalized last year, it happened under special circumstances for the latter in particular. Bungie has remained fully autonomous and continues to function as an independent subsidiary under Sony’s ownership, though it seems the studio might be under threat of losing that special status, as per report published by IGN.
Currently, Bungie’s board comprises of two representatives from Sony in PlayStation Studios head Hermen Hulst and Sony senior VP Eric Lempel, two representatives from the studio itself in Bungie co-founder Jason Jones and Bungie CTO Luis Villegas, and a tiebreaker vote in the form of Bungie CEO Pete Parsons.
According to IGN, however, should Bungie fail to hit certain financial targets “by too great an amount”, Sony will, as per the acquisition agreement, be allowed to dissolve the studio’s board and take full control over all of its operations, which means it will lose its independent status. And that is something that seemingly has a very real chance of happening.
The underperformance of Destiny 2 contributed to layoffs at Bungie earlier this year, which entailed about 100 jobs being cut. Bungie is relying on Destiny 2’s upcoming expansion, The Final Shape, performing well, but seeing as it was recently delayed out of the fiscal year into June 2024, while its pre-orders were also previously reported to be tracking below expectations, confidence may not be sky-high. The other big game Bungie is working on, Marathon, also won’t be out until 2025 at the earliest.
The studio has, as such, reportedly been cutting back significantly in several areas in the wake of the layoffs, while the possibility of further layoffs should The Final Shape not do well enough also has been broached. Reportedly, morale within the studio at present has been described as “soul-crushing”.
Destiny 2: The Final Shape is set to launch on June 4 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.