Sony halves Bungie workforce as Destiny 2 ends major updates
After eight years of Destiny 2, Bungie has ended major content updates and wrapped up the game with one final live-service update, Monument of Triumph, which launched on June 9, 2026. Just a few weeks later, the Bellevue-based studio is undergoing a painful restructuring, announced by Hermen Hulst in an internal email that Sony later published publicly.
The layoffs have affected a significant portion of the Destiny development team, as well as some Marathon developers. A recent Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed with the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries indicated that 292 positions at the company are affected. Reports suggest that, after the cuts, only about half of the studio’s workforce remains intact. Studio head Justin Truman is also reportedly stepping down less than a year after taking the role.
The news first emerged in Sony Interactive Entertainment’s memo, publicly released on June 25, 2026, in which Hermen Hulst said the layoffs followed months of internal review. Hulst stated:
“We have made the decision to reduce Bungie’s workforce, affecting a significant number of employees, including most of the Destiny team and some Marathon team members. This is painful news, especially for talented colleagues whose roles have been eliminated. This decision was made only after extensive discussion and careful consideration.”
Hulst continued, “Over the past several months, together with Bungie leadership, we reviewed the studio’s long-term direction, development priorities, resource needs, and role within our broader portfolio strategy.”
Bungie later announced the same news in a separate statement on X, saying that “Destiny fell short of expectations these past several years” and that “with our future projects still in early incubation, we unfortunately could not continue operating at our previous size.”
The WARN filing, reported by KOMO News, states that 292 staff members are affected, with separations scheduled to begin by July 9. Reports also indicate that the layoffs reduce Bungie’s overall headcount by roughly half.
This latest round of layoffs follows earlier job cuts and restructuring efforts at Bungie since Sony acquired the studio for $3.6 billion in 2022.
Individuals close to the situation have reported that Justin Truman, who took over as studio head in August after Pete Parsons stepped down, is also leaving the role and will be replaced by Poria Torkan, formerly Bungie’s VP of Operations.
Sony is currently offering transitional support to laid-off employees to help them move across its portfolio of studios.
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