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The renowned publisher has secured Ben Brinkman from the creators of Apex Legends to direct the studio crew at their internal studio, which is currently developing the upcoming over-the-shoulder roguelike extraction-shooter known as Project Ethos.

Management Change Follows Mixed Reception

Brinkman takes on the leadership position at 31st Union following the dismissal of former leader Michael Condrey, who was reportedly let go due to Project Ethos' disappointing unveiling last autumn.

Recently, 2K president a key figure informed staff about this organizational change through an internal memo, which emphasized that playtesting had shown the need for a distinct direction.

Ismailer noted that the team is now reimagining Project Ethos with a refreshed vision, aiming to satisfy gamer demands.

A Pattern of Key Acquisitions

The news follows a similar move taken by the publisher in the summer, when they recruited Rod Fergusson from the Diablo team to assist with the beloved franchise development group.

Here is the complete content from the president's memo:

Hello Everyone—

I understand you all just wrapped up your town hall - I hope you’re as thrilled as I am with the positive developments. Last time I sent 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 work with - and we’re eager for that partnership to persist.”

Through your commitment and flexibility, especially 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 appeal of a roguelike shooter but indicated we still had improvements to make. It uncovered the necessity for a clearer identity.

The progress is encouraging to see how far you’ve come. You embraced the feedback to heart and revamped the title with a refreshed goal - one that’s ready to deliver on its ambition to our fans.

Our confidence in this project grows every day. To boost the outstanding development you’ve made, I’m excited to announce Ben Brinkman as the latest Director of the team. After some time of talks, he comes aboard us on the specified date.

Ben’s guidance and experience in the PVP shooter genre is considerable, having devoted the last 15 years creating and leading some of the most popular series in the industry, for example the acclaimed shooter, and most recently, the battle royale hit.

Please join me in welcoming Ben soon. We are all looking forward to persist seeing the progress of the game in the time to ahead.

David

Experience of the Incoming Leader

The appointee currently holds the position of executive producer and production lead at Respawn Entertainment for Apex Legends. He previously worked at Treyarch and Activision in diverse production roles on the iconic franchise series, and, prior to that, had periods at other industry leaders.

Title Information and Concept

The upcoming game was announced in last year alongside a public demo. Initially, 31st Union described the game as a "no-cost, third-person perspective roguelike hero shooter and an exciting advancement on the genre."

"Build your perfect run—or die trying—in this 3rd-person action shooter! Build your hero in real-time to fit your unique tactics," the description reads. "Take on the opponents with new abilities, stakes, and obstacles that evolve every session. Will you leave securely with your hard-earned loot? Alternatively take a risk, risk it all, and pray your team can earn top ranking? The choice is yours."

Project Ethos does not have an official debut schedule or platforms, but fans can anticipate additional details as production progresses.