True Scale of Bungie Layoffs Revealed, With Nearly 300 Cut From Its Bellevue, Washington Headquarters Alone

True Scale of Bungie Layoffs Revealed, With Nearly 300 Cut From Its Bellevue, Washington Headquarters Alone

The true scale of Bungie’s recent layoffs has come to light, with nearly 300 employees from its Bellevue, Washington headquarters being let go. According to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notice filed with the Washington State Employment Security Department, 292 staff members were separated from the company on July 9. This figure does not include employees based outside Washington state, and it remains unclear how many individuals are still employed at Bungie following the cuts. As of 2024, the studio was reported to have employed 850 staff, suggesting that the layoffs may have reduced its workforce by a significant portion.

Bungie's Layoffs: A Pattern of Reductions

This is Bungie’s third round of layoffs in three years. A 2023 annual financial report from the city of Bellevue indicated that the studio once employed 1,000 people. Between October 2023 and July 2024, Bungie reportedly laid off around 320 employees, a move that local media has described as a “bloodbath.” According to The Seattle Times, the reductions have been widespread and impactful.

In its official statement, Hermen Hulst, CEO of the Studio Business Group at Sony Interactive Entertainment, described the layoffs as “difficult” and “painful,” but “necessary to align the studio’s resources with its current priorities and long-term goals.” The cuts follow the discontinuation of new content for Destiny 2, as well as the release of Marathon, a hardcore extraction shooter that has struggled to attract players. Despite this, Sony has reaffirmed its commitment to Marathon, with its team reportedly working on “incubation efforts” for future projects.

The WARN notice does not include individual names, but it outlines the departments affected, such as artists, technical animators, audio leads, sound designers, engineers, producers, systems designers, and Sony support teams managing Bungie’s infrastructure. This indicates that the layoffs were not limited to a single department or role.

Impact on Employees and Leadership

Several former Bungie employees have confirmed their layoffs on social media. Some of those affected have been with the studio for over a decade. Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreier noted that Bungie studio head Justin Truman, who took over from Pete Parsons last year, has stepped down. According to Forbes reporter Paul Tassi, Poria Torkan, a former Bungie VP of Operations, has taken charge of the studio.

The mention of “Chief Vision Officer” in the WARN notice has sparked speculation that Jason Jones, one of Bungie’s co-founders and creator of Halo and Destiny, may have left the company. Jones, who has largely remained out of the public eye, was introduced in an official Destiny 2 video in 2021 with that title. If Jones has indeed left Bungie, it would mark the end of an era for the studio behind some of the most iconic first-person shooters in gaming history.

Financial Struggles and Strategic Shifts

Bungie has faced financial challenges for years, and it was reportedly on the verge of closure before Sony acquired the studio in 2022 for $3.6 billion. Recently, Sony reported a $765 million impairment loss specifically tied to Bungie’s underperformance.

Bungie’s struggles with Destiny 2 reportedly began around the time of the Edge of Fate expansion, which underperformed in the summer of 2023. The decision to discontinue new content for the game allegedly came earlier this year after it was decided not to relaunch the franchise as Destiny Infinity.

According to Forbes, Bungie explored various scenarios for the future of Destiny 2 following the release of Renegades, a Star Wars-themed expansion in December that performed even worse than Edge of Fate. The studio reportedly abandoned the idea of Destiny Infinity, which would have marked a return to the single, large expansion model used in earlier Destiny titles. This decision was reportedly influenced by the high costs and risks involved, particularly in light of Marathon’s development and support needs.

Destiny 3 was considered at one point, but it never moved forward. There have been no official hints or behind-the-scenes indications that a third Destiny game is in development, with the high cost of production cited as the main obstacle.

Destiny 2 launched on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on September 6, 2017, with a PC version following a month later. However, tensions between Bungie and Activision grew over time, and the two companies officially ended their 10-year publishing deal in January 2019, five years earlier than planned. With Destiny now under its own control, Bungie self-published the game, but it struggled to maintain financial stability and a loyal player base. Even Marathon, which reportedly had a budget of over $250 million, has failed to meet sales expectations, according to analysts.