Bungie Staff Cuts
Bungie Lays Off Hundreds of Staff, Reorganizing After Destiny 2's Final Update
Key Points
Estimated scale of the layoffs: reporting indicates about 50% of Bungie, with a possible range of 40–55%, translating to several hundred roles, including most of the Destiny 2 team and some Marathon staff.
Marathon studio head Justin Truman is stepping down as Bungie reorganizes.
Destiny 2’s final content update occurred on June 9, signaling the end of updates for the game.
Sony/PlayStation leadership published the layoff rationale publicly, with Hulst stating the reduction followed a review of long-term direction, explored multiple alternatives, and was necessary to align resources with goals.
Marathon remains an important part of the portfolio and will continue to receive support as Bungie incubates future projects, including work on the Marathon project, while there is no announced Destiny 3.
Bungie confirmed sweeping layoffs on June 25, 2026, cutting roughly 50% of its remaining workforce — between 292 and 400 roles — after releasing the final content update for Destiny 2 on June 9. Final Weapon and Rock Paper Shotgun reported that most of the Destiny 2 team has been let go, with some Marathon staff also affected.
Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Hermen Hulst called the cuts "painful but necessary" to align Bungie's resources with its current priorities. Studio head Justin Truman is stepping down, and Bungie's headcount is expected to fall from roughly 800 to around 400, according to Kotaku.
Nine Years of Destiny 2 End With Mass Job Cuts
Bungie released the "Monument of Triumph" patch on June 9 — the final live-service update for Destiny 2. The game had run for nine years. Days later, on June 25, Bungie publicly admitted the franchise "fell short of expectations." No new Destiny 2 content is planned, and there is no Destiny 3 in development, TechRaptor reported.
A Washington State WARN notice lists 292 layoffs effective July 9, 2026. Insider estimates from Forbes push the true total closer to 400 when Sony support teams are included. That would represent roughly half of Bungie's post-2024 workforce, which had already been cut from a pandemic-era peak of about 1,300 employees.
Sony Took a $750 Million Loss Before the Cuts Began
Sony bought Bungie for $3.6 billion in 2022. Since then, it has taken a $750 million impairment charge — an accounting write-down that reflects how much the studio lost in value, according to Forbes. That brings Bungie's effective worth down to roughly $2.85 billion on Sony's books.
The acquisition included retention bonuses for veteran Bungie leaders that began vesting in mid-2024 and finish in July 2026. Metro noted that the bonus timeline coincides almost exactly with the layoffs, fueling criticism that key staff are cashing out as the studio shrinks.
Marathon Survives, But Faces an Uphill Road
Marathon — Bungie's extraction shooter — remains in active development and is described by Hulst as a "core part of the portfolio." However, KitGuru noted the game has struggled with weak engagement across its first two seasons. It was never meant to carry the studio alone.
With Justin Truman stepping down, Poria Torkan — a former VP of Operations and 11-year Bungie veteran — is expected to lead the reorganized studio. Hulst said Bungie will use this period to "incubate" new projects, though no future titles have been announced.
Workers Paid Off After the Final Update Ships
Critics and developers online called the timing brutal. Most of the Destiny 2 team delivered the game's final update and were then let go within weeks. Rock Paper Shotgun described the layoffs as part of a restructuring to "position the studio" for the future — language that drew sharp responses from the gaming community.
The cuts go beyond Bungie itself. Hulst confirmed that SIE support teams — Sony-backed studios that helped build Destiny 2 content — are also affected. The total economic impact on the Seattle area, where Bungie is based in Bellevue, Washington, is likely higher than the official 292-person WARN figure suggests.
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