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2K Games has welcomed Ben Brinkman from Respawn Entertainment to direct the studio crew at their internal studio, which is currently crafting the upcoming third-person roguelike extraction-shooter known as Project Ethos.

Leadership Change Follows Poor Reception

The new appointee steps into the leadership position at 31st Union following the departure of former leader Michael Condrey, who was removed from his post due to Project Ethos' underwhelming unveiling last fall.

Recently, 2K president a key figure updated employees about this organizational change through an internal memo, which highlighted that playtesting had revealed the necessity for a clearer vision.

Ismailer noted that the developers is now reimagining the project with a renewed approach, aiming to address player expectations.

A Pattern of Key Acquisitions

The news mirrors a comparable step taken by the publisher in the summer, when they brought on an industry veteran from the Diablo team to work on the beloved franchise development group.

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

Hello Everyone—

I understand you all just finished your gathering - I hope you’re as excited as I am with the positive developments. Last time I sent you all a message, I expressed the following: “I believe in this team. You all are some of the most driven and innovative designers we have had the opportunity to collaborate with - and we’re looking forward for that partnership to continue.”

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

The player input from last autumn’s Project ETHOS playtest was informative. It validated the potential of a roguelike shooter but told us we still had improvements to make. It highlighted the need for a more distinct vision.

The progress is encouraging to see how far you’ve come. You embraced the criticism to mind and revamped Project ETHOS with a refreshed goal - one that’s positioned to achieve its potential to our fans.

Our confidence in this project grows every day. To advance the incredible advancement you’ve made, I’m excited to announce Ben Brinkman as the incoming Studio Head of 31st Union. Following several months of conversations, Ben officially joins us on Monday, October 20.

His leadership and background in the PVP shooter genre is vast, having spent the past decade and a half developing and overseeing some of the most recognizable series in the industry, such as Call of Duty: Black Ops, and most recently, Apex Legends.

Let’s together in greeting Ben next week. We are all looking forward to continue seeing the progress of Project ETHOS in the time to come.

David

Background of the Incoming Head

Brinkman presently holds the position of senior developer and head of production at Respawn Entertainment for their flagship title. He earlier worked at Treyarch and Activision in various production roles on the Call of Duty games, and, earlier in his career, had assignments at other industry leaders.

Title Details and Concept

Project Ethos was revealed in October 2024 together with a community playtest. At the time, the developers presented the game as a "no-cost, 3rd-person roguelike hero shooter and an exciting step forward on the genre."

"Create your ideal gameplay session—or face defeat—in this engaging over-the-shoulder adventure! Build your hero in real-time to fit your unique tactics," the official summary explains. "Take on the opponents with fresh skills, risks, and obstacles that evolve every match. Will you safely extract with your hard-earned loot? Alternatively aim high, risk it all, and pray your group can achieve the highest spot? The option is yours."

The game has not yet received an confirmed debut schedule or platforms, but players can expect additional details as development continues.