Sony-owned Bungie announces another round of layoffs as it scales back operations

Sony-owned game developer Bungie has announced another round of layoffs, impacting employees across multiple game development teams as the studio continues to realign its operations. The company has not disclosed the number of roles affected, but the cuts extend across most of the Destiny team, parts of the Marathon team, and several Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) employees supporting Bungie's operations.

The latest restructuring comes less than four years after Sony acquired Bungie for $3.6 billion in 2022 as part of its push into the live-service gaming market. It also marks the studio's third consecutive year of workforce reductions, following layoffs in both 2023 and 2024.

Sony says restructuring aligns resources with long-term priorities

In a public blog post, Hermen Hulst, CEO of Studio Business Group at Sony Interactive Entertainment, described the decision as "difficult" and "painful", adding that it was necessary to align Bungie's resources with its current priorities and long-term strategy.

In an internal email to SIE employees, Hulst said the company had explored several alternatives before deciding to reduce the workforce.

"This is painful news, especially for talented colleagues whose roles have been eliminated," Hulst wrote. "This decision was made only after extensive discussion and careful consideration."

Sony said the restructuring followed an assessment of the studio's operational priorities and future development plans.

Studio faces pressure after key titles underperform

The latest layoffs come at a challenging time for Bungie, with two of its flagship projects failing to meet expectations.

Earlier this month, the studio released the final content update for Destiny 2, effectively ending new content development for the long-running title. In a statement shared on X, Bungie acknowledged the game's recent performance.

"We recognize Destiny 2 fell short of expectations these past several years," the company said. "Following our final content update to Destiny 2, and with our future projects still in early incubation, we unfortunately could not continue operating at our previous size."

Meanwhile, Marathon, Bungie's extraction shooter launched in March, has struggled to gain traction in an increasingly competitive live-service gaming market. Despite its slower-than-expected performance, Hulst said the title "remains an important part of our portfolio."

Key developments

According to Bungie and Sony, the latest restructuring includes:

• Layoffs affecting most members of the Destiny development team
• Job cuts impacting parts of the Marathon team
• A smaller number of Sony Interactive Entertainment employees supporting Bungie's operations also affected
• No official disclosure of the total number of employees laid off
• Transition support and redeployment opportunities being offered where possible across Sony Interactive Entertainment and its global studio network

As of 2024, Bungie employed around 850 people, although the company has not confirmed its current workforce following the latest cuts.

Third round of layoffs since Sony acquisition

The latest workforce reduction extends a pattern of restructuring at Bungie since its acquisition by Sony.

Sony completed its $3.6 billion acquisition of the studio in 2022, positioning Bungie as a key pillar of its ambitions to expand its live-service gaming portfolio. Since then, the developer has implemented layoffs in 2023, 2024, and now again in 2026, reflecting the challenges of sustaining large-scale live-service development amid shifting market dynamics and evolving player expectations.

Sony said its immediate priority is supporting affected employees through transition assistance while exploring opportunities for redeployment within its wider gaming organisation.

With Bungie continuing to incubate future projects and Marathon remaining part of Sony's long-term portfolio, the studio now faces the task of rebuilding its operations while delivering on the strategic ambitions that underpinned one of the gaming industry's largest acquisitions.