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2K Games has secured Ben Brinkman from the creators of Apex Legends to oversee the studio crew at their internal studio, which is currently developing the upcoming third-person action-packed title known as this innovative game.

Leadership Shift Comes After Lukewarm Feedback

The new appointee takes on the leadership position at 31st Union following the exit of former leader the ex-Sledgehammer Games executive, who was reportedly let go due to the game's underwhelming unveiling last fall.

On Wednesday, 2K president a key figure informed team members about this organizational change through an official communication, which emphasized that playtesting had shown the necessity for a distinct game identity.

The president expressed that the developers is now overhauling the project with a revised approach, aiming to satisfy community desires.

Trend of Strategic Hires

This announcement follows a similar step taken by 2K Games in the summer, when they recruited an industry veteran from the Diablo team to work on the BioShock studio Cloud Chamber.

Below is the full text from Ismailer's memo:

Team—

I know you all just finished your meeting - I hope you’re as excited as I am with the good news. Previously I sent you all a update, I mentioned the following: “I am confident in this group. You all are some of the most dedicated and talented designers we have had the chance to collaborate with - and we’re eager for that collaboration to continue.”

Through your commitment and flexibility, particularly over the past twelve months, you repeatedly show that.

The gamer responses from last autumn’s Project ETHOS testing phase was revealing. It confirmed the potential of a action-packed game but told us we still had refinements needed. It revealed the requirement for a sharper brand.

It has been motivating to see how far you’ve advanced. You embraced the feedback to mind and overhauled the title with a refreshed direction - one that’s poised to fulfill its potential to our fans.

The belief in Project ETHOS increases every day. To boost the incredible advancement you’ve made, I’m excited to introduce the new hire as the incoming Director of the team. After some time of discussions, Ben officially joins us on next week.

His leadership and experience in the competitive gaming genre is vast, having spent the recent years creating and overseeing some of the most well-known series in gaming, such as Call of Duty: Black Ops, and most recently, Apex Legends.

Let’s together in greeting him next week. We are all eager to keep observing the progress of Project ETHOS in the weeks to follow.

The President

Experience of the New Head

The appointee presently holds the role of senior developer and production lead at the renowned studio for Apex Legends. He previously was employed at major gaming companies in various development positions on the iconic franchise series, and, before that, had periods at 2K and Electronic Arts.

Title Information and Concept

The upcoming game was revealed in October 2024 alongside a early access event. Initially, 31st Union portrayed the game as a "no-cost, third-person perspective action-packed experience and an exciting step forward 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 suit your personal playstyle," the description states. "Face the opponents with new abilities, risks, and tests that shift every session. Do you safely extract with your hard-earned loot? Alternatively take a risk, risk it all, and hope your group can earn top ranking? The option is yours."

Project Ethos does not have an confirmed release date or platforms, but players can look forward to further news as development advances.