Bungie, part of PlayStation Studios, may find itself in a state of reflection as Sony has taken over a division of the studio…

Sony is taking over Bungie. The assimilation may be so serious that its creative arm, Bungie Creative Studios, has been renamed and will now operate as PlayStation Creative, but directly under Sony. Bungie, meanwhile, will continue to expand Destiny 2, work on the Marathon reboot (who knows what state that’s in?), and support Sony’s other live service experiments.

Bridget O’Neill, who was senior director of Bungie Creative Studios, now holds that position at PlayStation Studios. She also announced on Twitter that her job had changed, but only on paper: “I have a new job and an announcement: I am taking on a new role as Senior Director of Creative at PlayStation Studios, but I am not leaving Bungie! Bungie Creative Studios is joining PlayStation to build the foundation for a creative team that can support all games on PlayStation Live. The opportunity to share our experience working on Bungie titles with other studios developing live service games is very exciting. Live service is tough and has a unique set of challenges, so together we will be able to jump start the development of new games.”

This opportunity to share our experience working on Bungie titles with other studios that are building live service games is so exciting. Live service is hard and comes with a unique set of challenges, so together we will be able to give a jumpstart on development for new games.

— Bridget O’Neill (@iheartbunnies) October 22, 2024

Bungie was acquired by Sony Interactive Entertainment in 2022, and even then they said their experience and technology in live service games was important. The studio’s influence was the deciding factor in Naughty Dog cancelling The Last of Us: Factions, which was originally intended to be a multiplayer component of The Last of Us Part II that got too big and became a standalone project. However, according to PlayStation boss Hiroki Totoki, Bungie’s management is not taking responsibility for development schedules and budgets, and there have been several rounds of layoffs…

Who knows what will happen to Bungie after this?

Source: PCGamer