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When Jim Ryan departed his role as CEO of Sony, he left behind him an intense commitment to Live-Service games. Most of them have not panned out. in production games from studios like Guerilla and Naughty Dog have been in development for some time. The purchase of Bungie signified a tilt by Sony towards leaning into the Live-service market. It has not, from what I can see, paid off.

Naughty Dog's The Last of Us Online was canceled in December of 2023, and many of Sony's other projects either have had no updates or were similarly shut down, namely the most recent release: Concord. Sony is not the only studio and publisher leaning into the Live-Service system, of course. Capcom has also made forays into it, testing the waters with things like Monster Hunter World's time-limited event quests, daily bonuses, and seasonal events, a first in the series. Their biggest push, Exoprimal, ended its updates after 4 seasons, nowhere near the 10-year plan many of these types of games are pushing for. But Exoprimal and Monster Hunter World at least get to stay playable. The hype for Monster Hunter Wilds understandably has drawn many players back along the Return to World campaign. Many games are much less lucky.

Square Enix's bevy of live service offerings, including mobile games and the Splatoon-adjacent party shooter Foamstars have suffered their own closures and shut downs. On April 29, 2024 Nier Reincarnation closed its doors after ending its story. A story that no one will be able to experience outside of YouTube videos as there are no plans for an offline version of the game. Following that, Square Enix announced that the global version of Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius will be shutting down in October 2024, taking its collaborations with the likes of popstar Ariana Grande and Lara Croft of Tomb Raider with it, unless you can and play the Japanese version. Foamstars also is no longer retailing for its $29.99 price tag starting October 4, 2024, shifting to a free to play model entirely.

There have been many incidents in the past year alone of Live-Service games failing to either find their audiences or not doing anywhere near the amount of success that they were intended for. Destiny 2 released a highly acclaimed expansion in The Final Shape, the culmination to a 10 year long story arc that had begun all the way back in Destiny when it first released. All that critical acclaim did nothing to shield the workers at Bungie from layoffs that occurred in October 2023, before the expansion launched, and in July 2024, just after the beginning of the first big story arc of the new year plan for Destiny’s world going forward. 

The thing this is bringing to mind for me is, how tenuous it all is. Entire games could, either for reasons of losing staff and being unable to meet the previous standards or complete shutdown of the game itself, disappear entirely, vanishing from people’s consoles and phones and computers like dust in the wind. Years of people’s lives suddenly vanishing into nothing. It feels like such a phenomenal waste; both of people’s time and hard work, and money. 

Dissidia Final Fantasy: Opera Omnia shut down in February 2024. A mobile game centered around a celebration of Final Fantasy’s history, a la the previous Dissidia games, featuring characters beloved and obscure. One story chapter could be about Judge Gabranth from Final Fantasy XII bonding with Gau, the wild child from Final Fantasy VI. Another would be Aerith talking in person to Kadaj, the Sephiroth clone from Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, and trying to get him to be his own individual self. None of this excellent character interaction (in my opinion at least) or its turn-based turn manipulation JRPG gameplay saved it.

The Global version never even got to read all the story content released in the original Japanese version. The servers were separated by about a 6-8 month delay so global server players got a glimpse of what was coming, and in this case, what they would never see. I do not know the reason for the closure of Opera Omnia and I may never. It could have been anything from not quite being profitable enough for Square Enix or simply not having any where for the game to go. For all my praise, it is me mourning the death of a gacha game. I spent money on this game. And now, everything I spent it on is gone, lost to the digital abyss. Thankfully, they have stated that all of the conversations and cutscenes from the game will be preserved on the official Square Enix YouTube Channel, but who knows how long that will remain.

This is a fate that awaits any and all of these mobile games, or digital experiences with monetization. People can spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to get a single character or an outfit or a piece of gear (Apex Legends’ extremely costly and grind-heavy heirlooms come to mind) and then as soon as you get it, you could get an announcement saying as much as “Sorry, all your effort and investment is gone. We’re shutting down the servers in two days.”

All this can happen to a game you like or a game you don't. Things you love can go belly up in different ways than just shutting down. In chasing the money of these kinds of Live-service endeavors, their identity can be compromised in favor of more cosmetic real-money transactions, battle es where you have to pay money to get the full rewards, or even just by trying to make it so as many people as possible play it, trying to please everyone and ending up pleasing no one, or at least no longer pleasing me, in the case of Destiny 2.

I watched the game prioritize doing repetitive missions and extremely mind numbing collection activities. Progressing seasonal storylines and leveling up the season experience was simply centered around doing the same activity on higher or lower difficulties, hearing the same voice lines, over and over and over. And, to add salt on the wound, Bungie announced that they would be reviving their single player sci-fi first-person shooter series Marathon as, of all things, an extraction shooter.

It’s enough to start driving away even the most die hard players when they feel that everything they're doing or looking forward to is not a priority in the industry at large. It's made even worse when any sort of challenge reward is nothing more than a funny little label to hang over your character, or an in-game weapon that will be outclassed in a couple months anyway. Power creep, feature creep, attention creep all factor in. After all, when you have one game that already takes daily job-like clocking in and clocking out, where are people who have other, real-life responsibilities going to fit in your new time sink ritual game? People stick with what works.

The success of something like Astro Bot Rescue Mission, Elden Ring and its DLC, and smaller projects that sweep the awards every year, like a Signalis or Dave the Diver shows that there is good money to be made in things that don’t feel like they are trying to nickel and dime every person who interacts with them. It’s on publishers to realize that.

The post The Live-Service Game Structure Cannot Keep Going Like This appeared first on Siliconera.

On July 31, 2024, Bungie CEO Pete Parsons announced layoffs occurred at the studio responsible for Destiny, Destiny 2, and the Marathon extraction shooter. Roughly 220 roles, ing for 17% of the workforce, will be eliminated.

The full statement, released on the official company news site, detailed that Bungie will shift the remaining work force entirely to focus on Destiny 2 and Marathon development. In addition, Parsons stated that a sizable portion of the team would be more deeply integrated into Sony Interactive Entertainment. Approximately 155 Bungie roles will be moved to Sony Interactive Entertainment directly over the next few quarters.

These new layoffs hit of Bungie staff both in upper levels and lower levels of the company. Robert Brookes, a senior narrative designer who worked on Destiny 2 for five years and covered releases from 2020's Season of the Hunt to 2024's The Final Shape is one of the 220 individuals affected. The reason for the dismissals, according to Parsons, is that the company overstretched financial safety margins associated with spreading talent too thin and the "quality miss" of Destiny 2: Lightfall.

This announcement arrived midway through the newest Destiny 2 story chapter called Echoes, which followed The Final Shape. Parsons noted in the statement that 850 team remain. This is the second round of layoffs in recent memory at Bungie, with the other occurring in October of 2023.

No statements were made as to what this means for the current plans for Destiny 2's future content. Parsons said, "There will be a time to talk about our goals and projects, but today is not that day."

Destiny 2 is available for the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC.

The post Bungie Announces New Round of Layoffs appeared first on Siliconera.

On June 8, 2024, the Destiny 2’s Salvation’s Edge raid, the newest end-game challenge, was completed for the first time after over 19 hours. The team that crossed the finish line first wasn't one of the front runners or career raiders. Instead, it was Clan Parabellum, a group of six players who had been trying to reach World’s First and only ever came close during the past two and a half years of Destiny.

The frontrunners, streaming their attempts live on Twitch, wound up taking precautions to prevent others from taking their methods to heart. They blacked out their screen, muted all their audio, and. blurred their text-chats and buff indicators. They did anything to keep their lead. It didn’t matter. In the end, Clan Parabellum, a group who wasn’t even featured on the official raid race stream, was the one who took the first clear. They hadn't even been streaming on Twitch at all.

This victory feels intensely in line with the entire themes of The Final Shape, Destiny 2’s latest expansion and the culmination of the ten-year-long saga. In triumphing through frustration, exhaustion, and the dangers that The Witness, the antagonist of the entire saga, threw at them, Parabellum’s six-man crew showcased the things that make Destiny 2 unlike many other multiplayer looter-shooter RPGs. The new raid featured intense mechanical complexity, for one. The fourth stage of the raid, Verity, kept many teams stuck for almost eight hours, and others far beyond the World’s First clear. It focused on symbol memorization, positional precision, and clear communication between team . All this happened while fending off hordes of dangerously strong flying bats with guns. 

Contest-mode Destiny raids are always fraught with doom. Stress is high, enemies are hurting you way harder than they normally would outside of the highest difficulty challenges, and the limited team revives in this engagement make the smallest mistake costly. This one, the longest raid race in Destiny history at 19 hours, was nothing short of grueling.

Destiny is full of outsized heroes. The Awoken Queen, Mara Sov, Savathûn the Hive God of Lies, and Cayde-6 the Gone-but-not-forgotten Gunslinger, all factor into major world-changing events in the game’s narrative. Similarly, certain figures in Destiny’s real world community have made their names by doing challenging activities.

Datto, one of the frontrunners of the race, makes in depth guides for raids like Salvation’s Edge. Esoterickk, another contender, is famous for his solo completions of endgame activities and helping people figure out how to follow in his footsteps. Saltagreppo, the person who’s team was in the lead for the majority of the event, is a three-time World’s First Raid champion, belts from the dev team proudly displayed in the room he streams in. 

But Destiny 2, its world, and its gameplay, are about something smaller. It's about groups of friends coming together and, through teamwork, coordination, and focus even when things are getting tough, defying the odds and coming out the other end. The lore is peppered with this and the game is designed around it. 

In the interview segment in the most recent This Week at Bungie entry, folks from Parabellum talked about their favorite parts. They talked about coining the mechanic “Anime Eyes” the moment the Verity encounter made sense to them, and the good feeling and outpouring of and excitement from the Destiny community. For it to happen in this raid, the completion of which unlocked a new 12-player mission to close out this saga of Destiny history, seems like a triumph out of a fable. Against the odds and racing against time, six teammates and their friends cracked a puzzle that stumped the very best. They flung themselves forward and seized their opportunity and now are immortalized parts of Destiny legend. 

No one could have seen it coming, but that’s the beauty of it. After all, Guardians make their own fate.

Destiny 2 is available on the Playstation 4, Playstation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC

The post Destiny 2 Salvation’s Edge Raid Race Ended in the Most Destiny Way appeared first on Siliconera.

Bungie announced on social media that it began mitigating and addressing Destiny 2 The Final Shape connection issues and errors and apologized for the situation. In particular, the Bungie Help noted that Currant error codes shouldn’t be as common.

The initial announcements and apologies regarding the Destiny 2 The Final Shape connection issues and errors was 10 tweets long. It began by apologizing for the connection problems and noting the team was working on alleviating them. For example, load balancer machines, activity host, and server configurations adjustments implemented were mentioned as some of the ways the developer said it addressed problems. It also offered a temporary workaround for the missing cutscene problem by suggesting players head to Replayable Missions to potentially catch ones from the expansions first, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh missions. Finally, it closed things out with another apology.

As for Bungie Help, there’s only been one update in the last few hours. It noted the Currant error codes in Destiny 2 had been addressed. However, it also noted Cabbage and Weasel ones could still appear.

The main for the team also credited server restarts with assisting in solving issues in Destiny 2 The Final Shape.

Destiny 2 and The Final Shape expansion are available for the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC.

The post Destiny 2 The Final Shape Connection Issues and Errors Addressed appeared first on Siliconera.

Bungie and CD Projekt Red are collaborating to bring armor inspired by The Witcher series and Geralt of Rivia to Destiny 2. The armor sets are scheduled to arrive alongside the Season of the Wish on November 28, 2023.

The collaboration will bring 3 new armor sets, one each for the Titan, Hunter, and Warlock. The armor will be usable with the game's transmog system so players won't have to sacrifice stats for style. As well as armor, there will also be skins for players' Ghosts and Ships, a new Sparrow hoverbike, as well as a new finisher. Going by previous collaborations with games like Fortnite and Assassin's Creed, the items will likely be available as part of a pack, as well as individually.

The Bungie store will also be having a sale starting November 24, 2023, including fixed rates on shipping and previously retired Bungie rewards.

You can get a look at the armor sets, Ghost shell and Ship in the image below:

Destiny 2 players are awaiting the game's next expansion titled The Final Shape, which is set to end the 'Saga of Light and Darkness'. Bungie previously shared details about the expansion at the Destiny 2 showcase back in August, 2023. CD Projekt Red, meanwhile, announced a mod editor would be coming to The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, while Kotobukiya showed off the Bishoujo Ciri figure.

Destiny 2 is immediately available to play for free on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X, while the collaboration with The Witcher is set to arrive with the Season of the Wish on November 28, 2023.

The post The Witcher and Geralt of Rivia ing Destiny 2 appeared first on Siliconera.

During The Final Shape Showcase livestream on August 22, 2023, Bungie officially revealed Destiny 2 season 22, which is Season of the Witch. The massive update will be packed with content, such as two seasonal activities, weapons, and a new PVP map.

What can I expect in Destiny 2 Season 22? 633l1n

The Destiny 2 Season of the Witch will run until November 28. In Season 22, you will be teaming up with Eris Morn once again to master arcane powers to accept the deal made by Savathun before her death. Because of this, the Hive-based season will come with two magic-themed season activities called Altars of Summoning and Savathun's Spire. Continuing with this theme is the Season of the Witch progression mechanic Deck of Whispers, a new system that allows players to collect cards to buff their gameplay.

Below is a list of every feature coming to Destiny 2 Season of the Witch:

• Altars of Summoning - A three-player mode where you fill a Hive tithing bucket. After it is full, you cash out to earn a bunch of rewards (weapons/armor).
• Savathun's Spire - A three-player offensive mode. Random encounters and wave-killing PVE mode, where you learn to wield arcane magic from Savathun's tower.
• Deck of Whispers - Season 22 progression system. You collect cards to build a deck and earn perks on the battlefield (such as adding Arc jolt to your damage).
• Exotic Rotator Mission - New mission that lets you earn an Exotic Weapon. The first craftable weapon will be Dead Mans Tale. Vox Obscura and Operation: Seraph’s Shield will be added into the rotation during the season.
• Stasis aspects and fragments will be moved to the vendor system: Any character who has completed the Beyond Light campaign will be able to acquire all available Stasis Aspects and Fragments from Elsie Bray on Europa.
• Transmats will now be considered unlocks and not consumable items.
• Three new Strand Aspects will debut: Whirling Maelstrom for Hunter, Banner of War for Titans, and Weavewalk for Warlocks.
• New Season 22 Vendor Weapons: Unending Tempest Stasis Submachine Gun in Crucible, Luna Regolith III Solar Sniper Rifle in Strikes, Qua Xaphan V Void Machine Gun in Gambit, Cataphract GL3 Strand Grenade Launcher in Trials of Osiris.
• Ritual update: You can now complete your weekly challenges in any playlist you choose.
• Weapon range update: Auto Rifles, Pulse Rifles, and Hand Cannons will get an update to their optimal engagement ranges.
• New Trials of Osiris armor set.
• New Vex Crucible map Multiplex added to PVP mode.
• Relic 6v6 mode: Players will battle it out with Relic weapons, such as Aegis from Vault of Glass, the Synaptic Spear from Season of the Risen, and the Scythe from Season of the Haunted. After defeating a certain number of opponents with your weapon loadout, you will earn enough energy to pick up a special relic weapon to unleash on your foes.

[gallery size="full" link="file" columns="2" ids="979514,979513,979507,979506"]

Destiny 2 Season of the Witch Exotic Armor 3ky21

The Season of the Witch will add three new Exotic Armor pieces to the game, this time with a focus on arms. Hunters will be able to pick up the Mothkeeper's Wrath, which transforms the DPS unit into a healer/. If you are a fan of Void builds, then you are in luck, as Warlock's new Briarbinds allow you to deploy Void Souls at will. And finally, Titan's Pyrogale Gauntlets gives a major buff to Burnin Maul and Consecration with epic Solar Flame cyclones. The new Season of the Witch Exotic Armor pieces can be found in the Lost Sector Rotation schedule by completing the daily Solo Lost Sector on Legendary or Hero mode.

• Season of the Witch Warlock Exotic Armor - Briarbinds: Void Souls created by the Warlock last longer and gain strength as they defeat targets. Retrieve them and redeploy them at will.
• Season of the Witch Hunter Exotic Armor - Mothkeeper's Wrath: A Hunter’s grenade becomes a cage of loyal moths that release on impact and protect allies or debilitate foes.
• Season of the Witch Titan Exotic Armor - Pyrogale Gauntlets: Titan armor that empowers both Burning Maul and Consecration to unleash cyclones of Solar flame.

[gallery size="full" link="file" ids="979517,979518,979519"]

Destiny 2 Season of the Witch Croata's End Raid 573m7

The new Destiny 2 Season of the Witch Raid Croata's End will release on September 1, 2023.  Old-school players will this raid from the Destiny 1 expansion, The Dark Below. The Season 22 Raid will be available for all players for free starting in September.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtrlgWDwnRs

Destiny 2 Season of the Witch Weapons 1o4740

Destiny 2 Season of the Witch will launch with a new Exotic weapon called the Ex Diris. Players who have paid for the Season can obtain the Grenade Launcher at Level 1 on the . Simply boot up the game, and claim it on the battle tab. According to Bungie, the Catalyst will allow the Ex Diris and unleash "Amplified rage-filled destruction." The Season of the Witch will also launch with a new Seasonal Weapon set which includes a: Machine Gun, Hand Cannon, Sniper Rifle, and Rocket Launcher.

• Destiny 2 Season of the Witch Season Exotic Weapon: Ex Diris (Grenade Launcher unlocked at level 1)

[gallery size="full" link="file" columns="2" ids="979503,979528"]

Destiny 2 Season of the Witch Armor Sets 5b42s

• Thaumaturgic Seasonal armor set (threads can be imbued with the strength of eons).
• Season Univeral Ornament armor set (can be applied to any armor slot).

[gallery size="full" link="file" columns="2" ids="979526,979527"]

Although Bungie has announced the new Season of the Witch Raid, Croata's End, they have not yet revealed which Exotic Weapon will actually be featured in the PVE stage. Many have speculated that we may see Destiny 1 favorite Necrochasm make its return. The Season of the Witch will run through until November, and is one of the last stories leading us to the 2023 Final Shape expansion, which is the end of the Light and Darkness Saga.

Destiny 2 is available now on the PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

The post Everything Coming to Destiny 2 Season of the Witch appeared first on Siliconera.

Bungie revealed major details about Destiny 2 season 22 in a State of the Game blog update. From overhauls to Crucible to the debut of a new Exotic weapon mode, the August 2023 patch will bring substantial changes. The Season of the Deep will be coming to an end on August 22, 2023, and Destiny 2 season 22 will debut that same day.

What is coming in Destiny 2 Season 22? 594a3w

While there is still much unknown about the future expansion, Bungie finally gave us a huge sneak peek. In a surprise State of the Game blog post, the Sony developer outlined a slew of features and changes coming to Destiny 2 in the August update.

Veteran players looking for new PVP content will gain access to a new Vex map called the Multiplex. Crucible will be updated with a new 6v6 Relic mode, as well as the debut of the Checkmate modifier system.

Here is the full list of everything being added to Destiny 2 season 22 so far:

• Vex Crucible map Multiplex added.
• Checkmate modifier for PVP: The new mode increases player health, lengthens ability cooldowns, and makes Special Ammunition earnable by gameplay. Will be available in Crucible Labs from Week 5 to Week 10.
• Relic 6v6 mode: Players will battle it out with Relic weapons, such as Aegis from Vault of Glass, the Synaptic Spear from Season of the Risen, and the Scythe from Season of the Haunted. After defeating a certain number of opponents with your weapon loadout, you will earn enough energy to pick up a special relic weapon to unleash on your foes.
• Improved Fireteam matchmaking.
• Vanguard Medals: The Guardian Games feature will now be permanent and available in Vanguard Ops and Nightfalls.
• Additional Battleground maps will be added to Nightfall and Grandmaster rotations.
• Fireteam matchmaking will be added to Gambit.
• New Trials of Osiris armor set.
• You can now pin your favorite shader colors to the top of your armor list.
• Stasis aspects and fragments will be moved to the vendor system: Any character who has completed the Beyond Light campaign will be able to acquire all available Stasis Aspects and Fragments from Elsie Bray on Europa.
• Transmats will now be considered unlocks and not consumable items.
• Three new Strand Aspects will debut: Whirling Maelstrom for Hunter, Banner of War for Titans, and Weavewalk for Warlocks.
• The power level cap will not be raised in Season 22.
• Exotic Mission Rotator mode: The first craftable weapon will be Dead Mans Tale. Vox Obscura and Operation: Seraph’s Shield will be added into the rotation during the season.
• New Season 22 Vendor Weapons: Unending Tempest Stasis Submachine Gun in Crucible, Luna Regolith III Solar Sniper Rifle in Strikes, Qua Xaphan V Void Machine Gun in Gambit, Cataphract GL3 Strand Grenade Launcher in Trials of Osiris.
• Wish-Ender Exotic Quest: Will be changed to a single quest strand, with the removal of uncharged discs from player inventory.
• Ritual update: You can now complete your weekly challenges in any playlist you choose.
• Weapon range update: Auto Rifles, Pulse Rifles, and Hand Cannons will get an update to their optimal engagement ranges.
• Hand Cannons: All hand cannons will get increased reload speeds in PVE and a damage buff against minor and major enemies.

[gallery size="full" link="file" ids="976071,976072,976070"]

While most of Bungie's update was focused on season 22, the developer also teased a handful of future updates. After years of waiting, players will finally get the Fireteam Matchmaking for Dungeons and Raids. Season 23 will also see the debut of a new Iron Banner mode and the return of the classic Citadel map to Crucible PVP.

Destiny 2 is available now on the PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.

The post Here’s Everything Coming in Destiny 2 Season 22 appeared first on Siliconera.

The latest expansion for Bungie's long-running shared-world shooter, Destiny 2: Lightfall, launches next week. To build up anticipation, Bungie debuted the expansion's launch trailer during the latest PlayStation State of Play broadcast on February 23, 2023. The trailer shows off moments from the Lightfall storyline, laying out where The Last City's Guardians are going next.

Check it out.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-7Cq7LLPr4

The Destiny 2: Lightfall launch trailer sees the arrival of the Black Fleet, a large assembly of Pyramid ships, and its master, the Witness. Commander Zavala refers to the Witness as "the malefactor of our first Collapse," as the Witness is the primary representative of the Darkness, a primordial force that caused the destruction of Earth's Golden Age in the past. The Black Fleet's arrival and its assault on the Traveler and the Guardians causes great destruction, even threatening some of the game's named cast, like Amanda Holliday. The expansion will also see Guardians visit Neptune, and the city of Neomuna. Unlike the Last City and Earth, Neomuna was a stronghold that survived and thrived in the wake of the Collapse for generations, developing technology that sured the Golden Age. These included cybernetic enhancements to create Cloud Striders, a type of being capable of defending Neomuna from attack much like the Guardians defend the Last City.

Destiny 2: Lightfall will also expand the combat options available to players, by adding a new elemental subclass and a suite of abilities. The new subclass is called "Strand", and like the "Stasis" subclass introduced in the Beyond Light expansion, is derived from the Darkness. Strand abilities will empower Guardians with new options to fight and move with, including physics-enabled grappling hook-like abilities.

Destiny 2: Lightfall launches on February 28, 2023. The Destiny 2 base game is free to access on the PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S. At the time of this writing, the Destiny 2: Beyond Light expansion is also free to obtain on the PS4 and PS5 via the PlayStation Plus February 2023 games offering.

The post Destiny 2: Lightfall Launch Trailer Sees the Witness Arrive on Earth appeared first on Siliconera.

Sony announced that it will acquire Bungie, the developer behind series like Destiny and Halo. GameIndustry.biz reports the company will pay $3.6 billion for the studio. However, both the PlayStation Blog and Bungie announcement confirmed it will be able to act independently and will have “full creative control and publishing independence” of Destiny.

Bungie CEO Pete Parsons brought up the studios’ independence in both announcements, despite Sony’s acquisition and it becoming part of the PlayStation brand. Specifically, he noted, “We remain in charge of our destiny. We will continue to independently publish and creatively develop our games. We will continue to drive one, unified Bungie community. Our games will continue to be where our community is, wherever they choose to play.”

Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO and President also reiterated this. On the PlayStation Blog, he noted, “I want to be very clear to the community that Bungie will remain an independent and multi-platform studio and publisher.”

Bungie also shared an infographic image following the Sony acquisition announcement, which noted that Destiny 2 won’t become a PlayStation exclusive. It confirmed it will remain multiplatform.

Bungie’s most recent game is Destiny 2. It is available on the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PC, and Google Stadia.

The post Sony Announced Bungie Will Be Its Next Acquisition appeared first on Siliconera.

Resident Evil Village producer Peter Fabiano revealed via his Twitter that he left Capcom for a position with Bungie. He thanked everyone for their and announced his new job as Production Department Manager at Bungie. During his 13-year tenure at Capcom, Fabiano served as producer for several video games in the Resident Evil series.

Peter Fabiano wrote two short and sweet messages on his Twitter thanking everyone at Capcom for his successful career. He will now be working for Bungie, known for its games in the Halo and Destiny series.

Hard to write this best so I’ve decided to keep it simple: Thank you everyone at Capcom for allowing me to grow together with you over the past 13 years. I’m thankful and will cherish the experience forever. ありがとうございました！ファンとしてもこれからよろしくお願いします。1/2

— Peter Fabiano (@PFabiano) May 29, 2021

Thanks to everyone both in and outside the studio that have ed me over the years. I’ve taken a new position at Bungie working with some great people and continuing my journey. “Eyes up guardian.”

— Peter Fabiano (@PFabiano) May 29, 2021

Fabiano worked on Resident Evil Revelations as the localization director and then moved on to larger roles in the franchise. He served as a producer on Resident Evil 7, Resident Evil 2 Remake, Resident Evil 3 Remake, and Resident Evil Village. Additionally, Fabiano was the model for Peter Walken in Resident Evil 7, a character seen early on in the game. According to his Twitter, Fabiano also founded the Global Production department at Capcom Japan during his career there. We spoke with him in June 2020 about the challenges of remaking Resident Evil 3.

Peter Fabiano worked at Capcom for 13 years. He is now the Production Department Manager at Bungie.

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Square Enix are producing Halo: Reach figures as part of their Play Arts line. The Halo: Reach Play Arts -Kai- Vol. 1 line will feature figures of Noble Team : Noble Six, Emile and Jun. The Vol. 1 action figures are scheduled for a Fall 2010 release, with Vol.2 slated for release in early 2011.

“The Square Enix Merchandise Division is dedicated to creating collectible action figures that combine high production value and excellent articulation,” said Kanji Tashiro, Merchandise Director at Square Enix. “The Halo series has captivated fans across the globe, and we are thrilled and honored to be making action figures for its latest entry. We’re confident that even Halo fans that are not familiar with our products will be pleasantly surprised with what we have crafted.”

No images of the figures are available yet, but we'll keep you posted.

The post Square Enix Releasing Halo: Reach Play Arts Figures appeared first on Siliconera.

Bungie, the studio behind Halo and Marathon, are looking for 3D artists, animators, and programmers. In addition to those positions, Bungie is searching for a “Player Investment Design Lead” or a person who can figure out “the fine line between a reward that encourages players to have fun and an incentive that enslaves them.”

Sony is looking for a senior audio developer and a game design manager for their Santa Monica Studio. That’s the group behind God of War.

Nihilistic, the studio behind Zombie Apocalypse, has openings for a number of positions including a 3D artist, console networking programmer, sound producer, and gameplay programmer for an action-adventure console game.

Now for some jobs that don’t have to do with coding video games. Atlus is hiring a web programmer, a temporary game tester, and a bilingual (Japanese/English) language specialist, and an assistant editor.

And yes, there are jobs outside California and Washington. Budcat Creations, the studio behind Blast Works and the Wii versions of Guitar Hero, are looking for an environment artist and level designer.

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Last year Production I.G. and Studio 4°C collaborated with DC and Warner Bros on Batman: Gotham Knight. Now, ed by Bones (Fullmetal Alchemist), Casio Entertainment and Toei Animation (Kanon), they're working on a Halo anime financed by Microsoft.

The Los Angeles Times reports that directional duties will be handled by Shinji Aramaki, the man behind Appleseed and its sequel. Aramaki will also be directing his own Halo short. Titled Halo Legends, the anime series will be distributed by WB on DVDs and Blu-ray early next year, and will be previewable on XBLA this fall.

While Production I.G. is no stranger to working on game-related projects (they've worked on everything from Fire Emblem to Professor Layton), I was surprised to see Toei enlisted to aid with the project. Why enlist Toei when you've already got studios like I.G. and Studio 4°C, both with a significant amount of sci-fi experience?

Delving further into the L.A. Times' article gives you an idea:

Studio4 C's project, tentatively called "Origins," is a two-parter that's about 30 minutes long in total and tells the entire 100,000 year history of the Halo universe. Another, from Toei, is the only one outside of the official canon and pokes fun at some of the game's characters.

Well, that explains it! I'm not particularly interested in Halo, but I will it to having almost a blind faith in Production I.G. That they're involved with the series gives me enough incentive to want to watch it.

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Starting October 31 at 12:01 AM there will be a special game type called Infection. In this mode it’s (mostly) humans versus brainless zombies. During the start of every Infection match a few people get pinned on the zombie team, but most are fighting the living dead. However, if a zombie chomps on an unlucky player, they switch sides and the zombie horde.

Bungie only plans to keep Infection on the “Playlist of the Living Dead” for a limited time. Make that an extremely limited time because it will only be around from October 31 at 12:01 AM to November 1st at 3AM. Well… maybe… if it’s a smashing success, “it may return, as the restless dead are known to do.”

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The rumor is true. Bungie branched off from Microsoft and is moving in the direction of becoming an independent company. That doesn’t mean Bungie is about to switch gears and develop for other platforms or does it? Harold Ryan from Bungie explains, "We will continue to develop with our primary focus on Microsoft’s platforms; we greatly value our mutually prosperous relationship with our publisher, Microsoft Game Studios, and we look forward to continuing that affiliation through ‘Halo’ and beyond."

OK. So the plan for Bungie is to work with the Xbox 360 and whatever Microsoft has in their pocket. However, the statement is pretty clear that Bungie is, at the very least, thinking about developing for other consoles.

What about the multimillion dollar Halo franchise? Microsoft is going to continue it with other partners like Ensemble Studios who is working on Halo Wars and Peter Jackson. Meanwhile, Bungie is going to be developing new intellectual properties at their home base in Kirkland WA.

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