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The renowned publisher has appointed a seasoned producer from the creators of Apex Legends to oversee the development team at their internal studio, which is currently developing the forthcoming third-person roguelike extraction-shooter known as this innovative game.

Leadership Change Comes After Poor Response

The new appointee assumes the leadership position at 31st Union following the dismissal of former leader the ex-Sledgehammer Games executive, who was reportedly let go due to the game's disappointing early showing last autumn.

Recently, 2K president a key figure updated team members about this decision through an official communication, which highlighted that playtesting had revealed the necessity for a more defined direction.

Ismailer noted that the developers is now overhauling the project with a revised vision, aiming to satisfy community desires.

A Pattern of Strategic Hires

This announcement echoes a similar move taken by the publisher in the summer, when they hired an industry veteran from the Diablo team to work on the BioShock development group.

Below is the complete message from the president's memo:

Hello Everyone—

I understand you all just completed your gathering - I trust you’re as thrilled as I am with the positive developments. Previously I shared you all a message, I mentioned the following: “I believe in this crew. You all are some of the most dedicated and talented designers we have had the chance to collaborate with - and we’re excited for that collaboration to continue.”

With your dedication and adaptability, especially over the past twelve months, you continue to prove that.

The gamer responses from last autumn’s Project ETHOS testing phase was revealing. It validated the potential of a action-packed game but told us we still had refinements needed. It highlighted the need for a clearer identity.

It’s been inspiring to see how far you’ve advanced. You accepted the criticism to mind and overhauled the title with a renewed vision - one that’s positioned to fulfill its potential to our audience.

The trust in Project ETHOS grows every day. To advance the remarkable advancement you’ve made, It is a pleasure to introduce Ben Brinkman as the new Lead of the team. Following several months of talks, he comes aboard us on next week.

His management and expertise in the PVP shooter field is vast, having dedicated the recent years developing and overseeing some of the most popular franchises in the industry, such as the acclaimed shooter, and more recently, Apex Legends.

Please join me in receiving him in the coming days. We are all eager to keep witnessing the evolution of Project ETHOS in the weeks to ahead.

David

Experience of the Incoming Leader

Brinkman currently serves in the position of executive producer and production lead at the renowned studio for their flagship title. Brinkman previously was employed at Treyarch and Activision in various production roles on the iconic franchise games, and, earlier in his career, had assignments at 2K and Electronic Arts.

Game Information and Vision

Project Ethos was revealed in October 2024 in conjunction with a community playtest. At the time, 31st Union portrayed the title as a "free-to-play, 3rd-person action-packed experience and an exciting evolution on the genre."

"Create your ideal gameplay session—or face defeat—in this engaging over-the-shoulder adventure! Customize your character in live gameplay to fit your unique tactics," the game's pitch explains. "Take on the opponents with fresh skills, risks, and tests that change every session. Will you safely extract with your hard-earned loot? Or aim high, put it on the line, and hope your group can secure victory? The choice is yours."

Project Ethos has not yet received an confirmed release date or consoles, but players can anticipate more updates as production advances.