Days Gone Studio Hit With Mass Layoff After Live Service PlayStation Game Canceled

Days Gone maker Bend Studio has been hit by layoffs. Roughly a third of the first-party PlayStation team was cut following the recent cancelation of an unannounced live service project, but Sony confirmed the studio is working on a new project now and it remains 'confident in its future and creative direction.'
'Earlier this year, Bend Studio wrapped development on a live service concept. After careful consideration, we chose not to move forward with it,' a spokesperson for Sony confirmed to Kotaku in an email. 'As the team shifts focus to its next project, we've made strategic changes to better position the studio for long-term success. As part of this transition, a workforce reduction has taken place at the studio. This decision was not made lightly, and we are extremely grateful for the meaningful contributions of all those impacted. Bend Studio has been a valued part of PlayStation Studios for decades, and we remain confident in its future and creative direction.'
About 40 developers at the Oregon-based studio were laid today, as first reported by Bloomberg. The project they were previously working on was canceled earlier this year amid a purge of some internal live service projects, including an online God of War spin-off at Bluepoint Games. 'Bend Studio laid off a bunch of people today,' senior animator Robert Morrison posted on X. 'I was a part of the layoffs. I did my best. Hopefully I can find a new team to join.'
Best known for the Syphon Filter espionage games in the PS1 and PS2 eras, Bend Studio later moved on to developing handheld ports of first-party franchises like Resistance and Uncharted before eventually making 2019's open world zombie blockbuster Days Gone. The game didn't review as highly as some PlayStation exclusives but still sold well.
While fans pined for a sequel, the studio hasn't released a game since. Days Gone received a PS5 version earlier this year but has otherwise laid dormant as Bend Studio reportedly worked on a new live service IP. Leaked images made it appear like the now canceled game was an online multiplayer loot shooter of sorts, though no official details about the project were ever shared publicly.
The Bend Studio cuts are the latest self-inflicted wound of a PS5 generation live service pivot that's left Sony conspicuously short on big first-party blockbusters. Live service spin-offs of Twisted Metal and The Last of Us were also canceled, while Concord's launch went so poorly the company refunded the game and shutdown the studio behind it which had acquired just a couple years prior.
Another upcoming online shooter, Fairgame$, was recently delayed according to Bloomberg after it received negative feedback from external testing. That studio's head, Jade Raymond, departed around the same time.
Update 6/10/2025 5:06 p.m. ET: Added statement from Sony.
.
For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Yahoo

38 minutes ago

• Yahoo

Star-packed, Covid-shaped 'Death Stranding 2' drops this week

Japanese video game legend Hideo Kojima releases "Death Stranding 2: On the Beach" this week, a star-studded PlayStation sequel inspired by the Covid pandemic. Kojima has said the follow-up to the meditative 2019 game, in which "Walking Dead" star Norman Reedus played post-apocalyptic deliveryman Sam Porter Bridges, is "about connection". "The social situation was that everyone was divided" when development began on "Death Stranding" in 2016, Kojima said as he presented the new instalment at Los Angeles' Summer Game Fest on June 8. "I said, let's get connected. Right after that, we had the pandemic, and my fiction became a little reality" as people communed over new digital channels, he added. "Death Stranding 2", which drops Thursday, reflects Kojima's hope that people will rediscover analogue ways of being together following the years of isolation, he said. The first "Death Stranding" was a hybrid between a hiking simulator and a classic action game. It was set in a gloomy, fantastical science-fiction universe where characters are aged by the rain and carry foetuses that warn them of dangerous ghostly creatures nearby. Reedus's character Bridges had the job of reconnecting the last outposts of civilisation in a devastated United States following a disaster. This time Bridges's adventures will bring him to Mexico and Australia, in a story that 61-year-old Kojima -- creator of the equally fantastical "Metal Gear" stealth action saga -- said was completely rewritten in light of Covid-19. "I already had the DS2 idea but I had to scratch that off because I experienced the pandemic. So I rewrote," he said. "It's a new connection... I put that in the game system and I want everyone to experience that," Kojima added. French actor Lea Seydoux -- a star of films like James Bond adventure "No Time to Die" or Quentin Tarantino's World War II romp "Inglourious Basterds" -- returns in 3D form alongside Reedus. But new big-name talent is also along for the ride, including American actor Elle Fanning and the likeness of "Mad Max" director George Miller. French singer Woodkid composed the score for the new episode. Kojima Productions, the eponymous studio the developer founded in 2015 after leaving Japanese giant Konami, said in March this year that the first "Death Stranding" had more than 20 million players. And the franchise is broadening out to other media, with a feature film in development with American studio A24 as well as an animated film. Kojima is already turning his bottomless energy to other projects, including a horror game, "OD", co-written with American director Jordan Peele ("Get Out", "Nope") and developed in partnership with Microsoft. He is also returning to the world of spy games in the vein of "Metal Gear" with a new espionage title, "PHYSINT". kf/tgb/lth Sign in to access your portfolio

Tom's Guide

an hour ago

• Tom's Guide

Death Stranding 2 is the most beautiful game I've ever played — and it's everything I'd hope for in a sequel

Platforms: PlayStation 5Price: $69 / £69 / AU$125Release Date: June 26, 2025 (June 24 Early Access)Genre: Action-Adventure Death Stranding 2: On the Beach is a our second taste of Hideo Kojima's independence, and marks his first original title on the PS5. It takes up after the rather polarizing Death Stranding, which would go on to sell over 20M copies since its 2019 release across a variety of platforms, including PS4, PC, and even iOS devices. Its sequel keeps the same package-delivery gameplay structure of the original, but is underpinned by a story that's as breathtaking as it is action-packed. Sam Porter Bridges (Norman Reedus) is thrust back into the tides, put on a mission that sees him once more reconnecting a broken and isolated society using the chiral network. With the UCS (United Cities of America) in his rear-view, it's now time Sam sets his sights elsewhere. For that, we'll need the help of a sophisticated submersible called the DHV Magellan and new "Plate Gates," essentially giant wormholes connecting two distant places — in this case, Mexico and Australia. While this might be the second official title by Kojima Productions, this isn't Kojima's first rodeo. Elements of Metal Gear Solid ring throughout, with plenty of combat beats, stealth, and structure-building playing key parts in this exciting return-to-form. Here's why Death Stranding 2 is not only totally electrifying but already my favorite game of the year. Death Stranding 2 kicks off 11 months in the wake of its predecessor. Sam Porter Bridges is a father now, tending to the little baby Lou, the BB (Bridge Baby) who got you safely through the first game. You're holed up in Mexico, living a life of solitude that's punctuated by Lou's cheerful, bubbly laughter. All seems well in the world — Sam's world at least. But this happy-go-lucky, fatherly time doesn't last for long. Upon being thrust back into the world-connecting mix by Fragile (Léa Seydoux), who tasks you with bringing some areas of interest online in Mexico, your whole world no sooner falls apart. Lou's untimely and unfortunate passing following a random attack on your shelter leaves you devastated and heartbroken. You're once more totally alone. Some hope still remains, as Lou's supposed return as a BT (Beached Thing) in his old pod gives you slight solace. It's nowhere near the same, though, not as things used to be in those unforgettable 11 months of pure, unadulterated togetherness. A month passes and your mind remains in shambles. Depression and sadness have taken its toll, but Fragile's return with a whole new directive sparks hope. A new quest, led on a tar-gliding ship called the DHV Magellan might just be the thing that gives you the strength to carry on. It's here where we truly begin our journey, flowing neatly on through the Plate Gate into the sprawling open outback of Australia. And, it's here where even more exciting mysteries are just waiting to be uncovered. Kojima's brand-name narrative riddles are still ever-present, but the real meat of the story doesn't take several hours of cutscenes to sift through and get going this time around. Questions abound on the nature of several story threads, all of which you're left to ponder while traversing the Australian outback aided by a slew of new tools and friends that make the journey far more rewarding. The cast of astounding new characters includes the mysterious Tomorrow (Elli fanning) and Neil Vana (Luca Marinelli), to the bubbly Rainy (Shioli Kutsuna), and plenty more. Each have an interesting story to tell beyond the nature of the overriding narrative, making them feel as alive as ever. Of course, the return of Higgs (Troy Baker) ensures this mission is fraught with systematic impediments, made manifest in his legion of ghost mechs — not to mention the hordes of BTs and enemy encampments that litter the environment. Nothing Sam can't handle. Unlike its predecessor, Death Stranding 2 is all about the action. Combat, both stealth-based and in-their-face, is a pivotal part of your experience, and a slew of cool new toys makes this a total delight. These include an 80-round machine gun, bola stun gun, silenced machine pistol, and chiral cannon, to name just a few. One of my favorites, a weapon that was sorely lacking from the original, is the sniper rifle. It shoots tranquilizer rounds from a distance, but at the cost of drawing tons of attention, making you an instant target the moment it's fired. You do have to go out of your way to get this weapon, and it's not effective against the more menacing foes you'll be facing in Death Stranding 2: BTs, or "Beached Things." It's against these ghost-like creatures where Kojima's brand-name stealth comes into play. It dually blends the action-stealth you might know of Metal Gear Solid with the more terrifying aspects of Silent Hill, and works wonders, as getting caught by BTs can lead to a tough boss encounters, which can prove challenging in your first few hours. Luckily, stealth isn't a major requirement, but be sure to pack a grenade pistol (or two) if you're charting BT territory. But it's not just you making this trek through the grand outback. You'll find, thanks to the ever-growing chiral network that you're helping to put in place, a plethora of other players' tools and structures beginning to pockmark the map. Ropes, ladders, bridges, even weapons can all be found in the wild — so long as that particular area is connected to the network. Likes are the bleeding heart of this world. Exchanging likes is a way of broadening your connection with other players, many of which you'll find in the new SSS (Social Strand Service). Don't hesitate to make social contracts with those you know (and don't know) — they might just be your saving grace. If you're lucky, other players will directly assist you with a new feature called aid requests. This lets you drop down a beacon of need — say, a weapon's cache on the doorstep of an enemy encampment. Or, better still, you can even drop a request for that very encampment to be wiped out. There's this cathartic release you get every time you boot up Death Stranding 2 again and get a mass amount of likes from all the tools you've left behind and structures you've built. There's really nothing quite like it and it serves to give those hours of rebuilding roads, railways, putting up zip-lines, and leaving behind vehicles immense amount of purpose. Thus, whatever you do, don't play offline. Of course, this is still fundamentally the same gameplay loop as Death Stranding, which some might call "walking sim-esque." You're still a glorified delivery service worker trudging through the bleakness with packages strapped to your back — and that might not be for everyone. But, if there's one thing I can say, it's that Death Stranding 2 is one of the most beautiful games I've ever played. I've used camera mode in this game more than I ever have in all my life. The new day/night cycle coupled with the gorgeous backdrops make it prime fodder for unimaginable photography, the likes of which I'm nowhere near as capable at mastering as others. And, while it might bear a similar gameplay loop as its predecessor, at least there are plenty of quality of life improvements. These include much simpler menu navigation where you don't have to hold "X" to exit with your luggage, weapons instantly switching to the desired ammo type depending on the enemy encounter, and cargo management being an absolute breeze with its own d-pad quick button. Add to that major gameplay changes, like APAS enhancements that let you beef up Sam's abilities and mining facilities, some connected to full monorail systems, and many of the issues that plagued the original are long forgotten. Oh, and zip-lines can curve now! Death Stranding 2 is a once-in-a-lifetime achievement. It's genuinely hard to put to words the gravity and emotions that swell throughout this game. Not just in terms of its narrative, but also in how the themes are represented so eloquently in its gameplay loop. It's also one of the very few experiences that actually brought tears to my eyes in its closing moments. Say what you will about the "walking sim" aspect of its general gameplay, put the story and its characters have purpose. They have feeling and mean something to you in the end. When those credits roll — you're left with unfettered sorrow and happiness all the same. Even if the first game left you feeling dissatisfied, stick with this one. There's so much to love in its asynchronous strand multiplayer elements, fluid stealth-combat, and meditative adventure. At its heart is a message that's totally poignant and ripe for our times, something we should all take to heart even in our bleakest moments. It's that we're never truly alone, and even in those small windows of seemingly helpless isolation, you should (and must) keep on keeping on.

Axios

2 hours ago

• Axios

Shaq's favorite Dallas spots

Shaquille O'Neal has four NBA championships and millions of dollars, but he's just like the rest of us: a proud Texan. The intrigue: The basketball legend owns property in North Texas, has a fried chicken restaurant in Fort Worth and is an investor with Mark Cuban in Austin-based BeatBox, which sells single-serve alcohol. He broke out into "Deep in the Heart of Texas" between media interviews in Irving last week. What he's saying: O'Neal says he has no gripes about Dallas-Fort Worth. "I'm from San Antonio so I'm familiar with the culture. It's spread out. I can do anything I want here — hunting, restaurants, fishing, boating, flying with my cousin who works for Irving PD," he tells Axios. Here are his favorite things in Dallas: 🍗 Favorite restaurant: Babe's and Big Chicken 🥩 Go-to order at Babe's: I always tell the chef I want the biggest chicken fried steak in Texas history. 📺 Favorite place for a night out: I'm a Netflix man right now. 🏀 Favorite Dallas sports fan base: Mavericks. A lot of memories, especially beating you guys in the (2006) Finals and my battles with the great Mark Cuban. 👀 Current Dallas bucket list item: Probably the JFK assassination site again.