Destiny 2 developer Bungie might experience a full takeover by Sony if the company is not able to attain its financial goals. Could this be the end of Bungie as we know it?
Company Takeover Imminent?
For those who did not know, Bungie laid off roughly 100 employees back in October as a measure to cut back on costs. The Bungie staff that got fired were reportedly notified via email about a meeting that would tell them more about the situation.
According to multiple current and former Bungie employees, the meeting that took place hinted at the possibility that the company might suffer a total takeover by Sony. The notion of full independence might no longer be a reality soon if Bungie is not able to steer the ship in the right direction.
As it stands, the board of directors consists of five members, including PlayStation Studios head Hermen Hulst, Sony Senior Vice President Eric Lempel, Bungie co-founder Jason Jones, Bungie Chief Technology Office Luis Villegas, and Bungie Chief Executive Officer Pete Parsons.
When Sony acquired Bungie in 2022, it was stated that the Destiny 2 developer would have full independence over the operations. The current split-board structure, however, depends on the performance of the development company, especially pertaining to its ability to hit certain financial goals. The problem here is that Bungie is unlikely to meet these expectations due to abysmal sales and poor reception of the Lightfall expansion. This fuels speculation that a full company takeover is imminent.
While Bungie has laid off 8% of its workforce in an effort to save money, it seems that the company did not stop there. According to multiple current Bungie employees, other cost-saving measures were also implemented, such as reducing travel budgets, a studio-wide hiring freeze, the abolition of holiday bonuses, and keeping "Bungie Day" purely as a virtual event, among many others.
Unsurprisingly, all of these things that the Bungie executives had to do have resulted in a massive decay of morale among employees over the last month, with one stating that the mood within the studio is nothing short of "soul-crushing." As if that is not bad enough, the company management has done nothing to improve the atmosphere. Employees were also told in subsequent meetings that the executives might make another round of layoffs just to keep Bungie's independence intact.
Read Also: Bungie Officially Announces Destiny 2 'The Final Shape' Delay, Cites 'Bigger and Bolder' Vision
What Do the Fans Say?
Destiny 2 players took to Reddit to voice their opinions about the matter. Redditor @Auren-Dawnstar said that it is likely going to get worse for everyone involved as company management is doing everything it can to meet those financial goals.
Another Redditor sees the situation differently. Bungie's recent struggles are an "absolute win" for the players because the company's higher-ups have proven their greed and incompetence over and over again. A full takeover by Sony may lead to better results. This opinion was probably sparked by the egregiously overpriced microtransactions being offered in the game.
What do you think? Is Bungie going to retain its full independence in the near future or is a full company takeover imminent at this point?
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