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The renowned publisher has appointed a seasoned producer from Respawn Entertainment to lead the development team at their internal studio, which is currently crafting the anticipated third-person roguelike extraction-shooter known as this innovative game.

Management Shift Follows Poor Reception

The new appointee steps into the role of studio head at 31st Union following the departure of former leader Michael Condrey, who was removed from his post due to Project Ethos' underwhelming early showing last autumn.

On Wednesday, 2K president David Ismailer updated team members about this decision through an official communication, which emphasized that early feedback sessions had shown the necessity for a clearer vision.

The president expressed that the team is now reimagining the project with a renewed vision, aiming to better meet community desires.

Trend of Key Recruitment

The news follows a similar step taken by 2K Games in the summer, when they brought on an industry veteran from the Diablo team to contribute to the BioShock development group.

Below is the full message from Ismailer's memo:

Dear Team—

I know you all just wrapped up your town hall - I hope you’re as thrilled as I am with the good news. Previously I shared you all a message, I mentioned the following: “I believe in this team. You all are some of the most driven and innovative designers we have had the chance to collaborate with - and we’re eager for that collaboration to persist.”

Through your commitment and flexibility, particularly over the past twelve months, you continue to prove that.

The community feedback from last autumn’s Project ETHOS testing phase was informative. It affirmed the potential of a roguelike shooter but made clear we still had refinements needed. It revealed the requirement for a more distinct brand.

It’s been inspiring to see how far you’ve come. You embraced the feedback to mind and overhauled Project ETHOS with a renewed goal - one that’s positioned to deliver on its ambition to our fans.

Our confidence in Project ETHOS strengthens every day. To boost the outstanding advancement you’ve made, I am thrilled to welcome Ben Brinkman as the new Lead of the team. After a period of discussions, he starts with us on the specified date.

Ben’s management and experience in the PVP shooter genre is considerable, having dedicated the past decade and a half developing and leading some of the most well-known franchises in gaming, including Call of Duty: Black Ops, and most recently, Apex Legends.

I invite you all in welcoming him in the coming days. We are all eager to keep witnessing the progress of Project ETHOS in the months to ahead.

The President

Background of the Incoming Head

Brinkman presently holds the role of executive producer and production lead at the renowned studio for their flagship title. He previously was employed at Treyarch and Activision in various development positions on the Call of Duty games, and, prior to that, had assignments at 2K and Electronic Arts.

Title Information and Vision

Project Ethos was unveiled in October 2024 in conjunction with a public demo. Initially, the developers presented the game as a "no-cost, third-person perspective roguelike hero shooter and an thrilling advancement on the style."

"Create your ideal gameplay session—or face defeat—in this engaging over-the-shoulder adventure! Build your hero in live gameplay to match your preferred approach," the official summary explains. "Challenge the opponents with fresh skills, challenges, and challenges that evolve every session. Do you safely extract with your hard-earned loot? Alternatively take a risk, risk it all, and pray your group can secure victory? The option is up to you."

The game does not have an official release date or platforms, but players can look forward to more updates as production progresses.