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The renowned publisher has appointed Ben Brinkman from Respawn Entertainment to direct the studio crew at 31st Union, which is currently working on the forthcoming over-the-shoulder action-packed title known as this innovative game.

Management Transition Follows Poor Response

Brinkman assumes the leadership position at 31st Union following the exit of previous head Michael Condrey, who was removed from his post due to the game's lackluster unveiling last autumn.

Recently, 2K president a key figure updated employees about this decision through an official communication, which stressed that playtesting had shown the need for a clearer direction.

Ismailer stated that the developers is now refining the project with a revised focus, aiming to satisfy community desires.

Trend of Key Recruitment

This announcement echoes a similar move taken by the publisher in August, when they hired Rod Fergusson from the Diablo team to assist with the BioShock development group.

Here is the entire message from Ismailer's communication:

Hello Everyone—

I understand you all just wrapped up your town hall - I trust you’re as thrilled as I am with the good news. Last time I sent you all a note, I mentioned the following: “I am confident in this team. You all are some of the most driven and talented developers we have had the chance to partner with - and we’re excited for that partnership to continue.”

Through your commitment and flexibility, particularly over the last year, you repeatedly show that.

The community feedback from last fall’s Project ETHOS playtest was revealing. It confirmed the potential of a roguelike shooter but indicated we still had refinements needed. It highlighted the necessity for a sharper brand.

The progress is encouraging to see how far you’ve advanced. You embraced the input to consideration and reimagined the title with a revitalized goal - one that’s ready to fulfill its potential to our audience.

The belief in this project strengthens every day. To boost the remarkable progress you’ve made, I’m excited to welcome the new hire as the latest Lead of 31st Union. After some time of talks, Ben officially joins us on next week.

His leadership and experience in the competitive gaming genre is extensive, having spent the past decade and a half creating and managing some of the most popular franchises in the industry, including the acclaimed shooter, and more recently, the battle royale hit.

Please join me in welcoming him in the coming days. We are all excited to keep seeing the evolution of Project ETHOS in the months to follow.

The President

Experience of the Incoming Head

Brinkman currently serves in the role of executive producer and head of production at Respawn Entertainment for Apex Legends. He earlier was employed at Treyarch and Activision in multiple production roles on the iconic franchise series, and, earlier in his career, had assignments at 2K and Electronic Arts.

Title Details and Vision

The upcoming game was unveiled in October 2024 in conjunction with a public demo. Initially, 31st Union portrayed the game as a "no-cost, third-person perspective action-packed experience and an thrilling advancement on the category."

"Create your ideal gameplay session—or face defeat—in this engaging over-the-shoulder adventure! Customize your character in live gameplay to suit your personal playstyle," the official summary explains. "Take on the competition with unique powers, risks, and tests that evolve every round. Do you safely extract with your hard-earned loot? Alternatively aim high, risk it all, and hope your group can secure victory? The decision is in your hands."

The game does not have an announced release date or supported systems, but players can look forward to further news as development progresses.