The renowned publisher has appointed Ben Brinkman from the creators of Apex Legends to oversee the development team at their internal studio, which is currently working on the anticipated third-person roguelike extraction-shooter known as this innovative game.
Management Change Follows Poor Reception
The new appointee takes on 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 initial reveal last fall.
Recently, 2K president David Ismailer notified staff about this strategic move through an official communication, which highlighted that playtesting had shown the necessity for a more defined game identity.
The president noted that the developers is now overhauling Project Ethos with a refreshed approach, aiming to satisfy community desires.
Trend of Strategic Hires
This announcement follows a similar step taken by the publisher in August, when they hired Rod Fergusson from Blizzard to contribute to the beloved franchise studio Cloud Chamber.
Below is the complete content from Ismailer's announcement:
Hello Everyone—
I understand you all just completed your gathering - I hope you’re as enthusiastic as I am with the positive developments. Last time I sent you all a message, I stated the following: “I am confident in this crew. You all are some of the most motivated and talented developers we have had the opportunity to work with - and we’re excited for that partnership to persist.”
Given your hard work and flexibility, particularly over the last year, you consistently demonstrate that.
The player input from last autumn’s Project ETHOS demo was informative. It validated the appeal of a action-packed game but told us we still had improvements to make. It uncovered the requirement for a sharper brand.
The progress is encouraging to see how far you’ve come. You embraced the input to consideration and overhauled Project ETHOS with a refreshed goal - one that’s positioned to deliver on its ambition to our fans.
Our confidence in Project ETHOS increases every day. To boost the outstanding development you’ve made, It is a pleasure to introduce Ben Brinkman as the latest Director of the team. Following some time of discussions, Ben officially joins us on Monday, October 20.
Ben’s guidance and background in the PVP shooter field is considerable, having devoted the past decade and a half producing and leading some of the most recognizable series in the industry, for example Call of Duty: Black Ops, and more recently, the battle royale hit.
Please join me in greeting him next week. We are all excited to keep observing the evolution of Project ETHOS in the weeks to ahead.
The President
Background of the New Leader
Brinkman presently serves in the role of executive producer and production lead at Respawn Entertainment for Apex Legends. Brinkman previously was employed at Treyarch and Activision in multiple production roles on the Call of Duty series, and, prior to that, had periods at 2K and Electronic Arts.
Title Information and Vision
Project Ethos was revealed in last year alongside a community playtest. At the time, 31st Union portrayed the game as a "free-to-play, third-person perspective roguelike hero shooter and an exciting step forward on the category."
"Build your perfect run—or die trying—in this 3rd-person action shooter! Customize your character in real-time to fit your unique tactics," the game's pitch states. "Take on the opponents with unique powers, stakes, and obstacles that shift every match. Do you safely extract with your valuable rewards? Or aim high, risk it all, and hope your group can earn top ranking? The choice is in your hands."
Project Ethos does not have an confirmed launch window or platforms, but players can anticipate more updates as production advances.
