2023 may have been a great year for games, but it’s been a tumultuous year for the games industry. An astonishing number of studios have been hit with layoffs over the last few months, and recently, it was confirmed that Destiny 2 developer Bungie had joined that list, amidst delays to both Destiny 2: The Final Shape and Marathon.
Now, a new report published by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier has shed further light on the scope of the layoffs, revealing that about 100 jobs were cut across the studio, accounting for nearly 8% of the total workforce, which stood at around 1,200 employees prior to the layoffs.
The report further adds that laid off employees are receiving three months of severance and health insurance, as well as prorated bonuses, though other benefits have ended, while employees who were on a vesting schedule following Sony’s acquisition of Bungie will also be losing their shares in the company.
Interestingly enough, it’s also being reported that the primary reason for these layoffs is Destiny 2– more specifically, the game’s underperformance following the launch of its previous expansion, Lightfall. Pre-orders for upcoming expansion The Final Shape have also allegedly been falling below internal projections. Bungie apparently missed its revenue targets by an eye-watering 45% as a result of Destiny 2’s underperformance.
The report also adds that Bungie’s job cuts are part of a wider cost-cutting initiative across all of PlayStation. Fellow PlayStation-owned studios like Naughty Dog and Media Molecule have also recently suffered layoffs.