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2K Games has welcomed Ben Brinkman from the creators of Apex Legends to oversee the development team at their internal studio, which is currently working on the forthcoming third-person action-packed title known as Project Ethos.

Management Shift Comes After Lukewarm Response

Brinkman steps into the role of studio head at the development studio following the departure of previous head Michael Condrey, who was removed from his post due to the game's disappointing early showing last fall.

On Wednesday, 2K president a key figure informed employees about this strategic move through an official communication, which stressed that playtesting had shown the necessity for a more defined vision.

Ismailer stated that the developers is now reimagining Project Ethos with a revised approach, aiming to better meet gamer demands.

A Pattern of Key Recruitment

This announcement follows a similar step taken by the publisher in the summer, when they hired an industry veteran from Blizzard to work on the beloved franchise studio Cloud Chamber.

Here is the complete content from Ismailer's memo:

Team—

I understand you all just completed your gathering - I trust you’re as excited as I am with the positive developments. Last time I shared you all a message, I stated the following: “I am confident in this group. You all are some of the most dedicated and creative designers we have had the pleasure to partner with - and we’re looking forward for that collaboration to persist.”

Given your hard work and versatility, especially over the last year, you consistently demonstrate that.

The community feedback from last autumn’s Project ETHOS demo was informative. It confirmed the potential of a action-packed game but told us we still had improvements to make. It uncovered the requirement for a sharper vision.

It has been motivating to see how far you’ve advanced. You embraced the criticism to heart and reimagined the title with a renewed vision - one that’s positioned to fulfill its potential to our fans.

The trust in this project grows every day. To boost the remarkable development you’ve made, It is a pleasure to introduce Ben Brinkman as the incoming Studio Head of 31st Union. After a period of conversations, Ben officially joins us on Monday, October 20.

Ben’s management and experience in the PVP shooter genre is extensive, having dedicated the past decade and a half producing and managing some of the most well-known franchises in gaming, such as the acclaimed shooter, and most recently, the battle royale hit.

Please join me in receiving him in the coming days. We are all excited to keep observing the progress of Project ETHOS in the months to come.

The President

Background of the New Head

Brinkman presently serves in the position of executive producer and head of production at Respawn Entertainment for their flagship title. Brinkman previously was employed at Treyarch and Activision in diverse production roles on the Call of Duty series, and, before that, had assignments at 2K and Electronic Arts.

Title Details and Concept

The upcoming game was unveiled in last year in conjunction with a public demo. At the time, 31st Union presented the game as a "free-to-play, third-person perspective action-packed experience and an exciting evolution on the style."

"Build your perfect run—or die trying—in this 3rd-person action shooter! Customize your character in live gameplay to match your preferred approach," the official summary reads. "Challenge the competition with fresh skills, challenges, and challenges that evolve every round. Will you safely extract with your valuable rewards? Or go big, gamble everything, and hope your squad can earn top ranking? The decision is yours."

Project Ethos does not have an announced release date or platforms, but fans can look forward to further news as development progresses.