For the past few months, Destiny 2 has been my game of choice. I find the lore interesting, the gameplay extremely motivating, and there’s always some carrot dangling in front of me to chase. At least, as long as Bungie keeps putting out new content on a regular basis.
That’s exactly where the problem seems to be right now. Instead of February 2024 as planned, Bungie now intends to release the next major Destiny 2 expansion, The Final Shape, in June 2024. This pushes back the final expansion of the Light and Darkness saga by a full four months. I think it’s unlikely we’ll see alternative content during the wait, as it would have to be created with the same resources that couldn’t meet the original release date for The Final Shape.
On the same day, it was also announced that Bungie is parting ways with about 100 employees. It seems that it was mainly story writers, community staff, and the composer who were let go. Both pieces of news together have led many players to assume that the expansion is being delayed because of the staff cuts. I think that’s pretty nonsensical, though. The bulk of the work in game development (in terms of hours) is software development and graphic design. Neither of these areas has seen any known staff reductions. It’s safe to assume that at this point, both the story and the music for The Final Shape are already finished.
With that in mind, the question is: Why would Bungie pay several writers and a composer from now (late October 2023) until June 2024 when they have hardly any work to do? If it’s ten people, that’s seven months’ worth of salaries. I’ll just estimate a round figure of 5,000 euros and come up with 350,000 euros in personnel costs for that period. You could also hire five more developers for that. Or make less of a loss. Surely, Bungie agreed to a target with Sony that they have to meet. And it seems they missed that very target by 45%, at least if you believe the article from Bloomberg.
But Sony has no emotional attachment to Destiny 2; they didn’t buy Bungie because they think Destiny 2 is so great. Sometimes a corporation will knowingly accept lower profits or even a loss, but not permanently. And when a target is missed by almost half, management will naturally demand a plan to achieve it. The problem for Bungie now is that they can only increase revenue to a limited extent, and certainly not in the short term. That leaves only expenses. And in a development studio, employees are the biggest cost factor, and in countries like the USA, also the most flexible one.
But what do we learn from this? I assume that Bungie will use the delay to make The Final Shape a success. Sony has granted Bungie an extension with conditions, but the studio can’t afford another failure like Lightfall. The fact that the essential employees—the developers and designers—were not affected by the cost-cutting measures also supports this. So, the extra four months will go directly into the quality and scope of the expansion.
Even though I sympathize with the laid-off employees, for me as a customer, the news isn’t nearly as negative as many influencers are making it out to be. Sure, it could still go wrong, and that would be the end of Destiny 2. But if Bungie’s plan works out, we have a great expansion to look forward to.