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2K Games has appointed Ben Brinkman from the creators of Apex Legends to oversee the studio crew at 31st Union, which is currently crafting the forthcoming over-the-shoulder roguelike extraction-shooter known as Project Ethos.

Leadership Change Follows Poor Response

Brinkman steps into the leadership position at 31st Union following the exit of former leader Michael Condrey, who was removed from his post due to Project Ethos' underwhelming early showing last fall.

Recently, 2K president David Ismailer informed staff about this organizational change through an internal memo, which emphasized that playtesting had shown the necessity for a distinct vision.

Ismailer stated that the team is now reimagining the project with a revised vision, aiming to address player expectations.

A Pattern of Key Recruitment

The news mirrors a comparable action taken by 2K Games in the summer, when they hired Rod Fergusson from the Diablo team to contribute to the beloved franchise studio Cloud Chamber.

Here is the entire text from Ismailer's communication:

Dear Team—

I understand you all just wrapped up your town hall - I trust you’re as thrilled as I am with the positive developments. Last time I shared you all a note, I mentioned the following: “I am confident in this team. You all are some of the most dedicated and creative creators we have had the opportunity to work with - and we’re looking forward for that partnership to continue.”

Through your commitment and versatility, especially over the past twelve months, you repeatedly show that.

The community feedback from last fall’s the game playtest was informative. It confirmed the appeal of a action-packed game but made clear we still had refinements needed. It highlighted the necessity for a more distinct vision.

It’s been inspiring to see how far you’ve come. You embraced the feedback to heart and overhauled the title with a refreshed goal - one that’s ready to achieve its ambition to our fans.

Our confidence in this project increases every day. To advance the outstanding progress you’ve made, I’m excited to introduce Ben Brinkman as the incoming Studio Head of the team. Following some time of conversations, he starts with us on next week.

His guidance and experience in the PVP shooter genre is considerable, having spent the recent years developing and overseeing some of the most popular franchises in gaming, including Call of Duty: Black Ops, and lately, Apex Legends.

Let’s together in receiving Ben in the coming days. We are all eager to persist seeing the progress of Project ETHOS in the weeks to follow.

The President

Experience of the New Leader

Brinkman presently serves in the position of senior developer and head of production at Respawn Entertainment for their flagship title. Brinkman earlier was employed at Treyarch and Activision in diverse development positions on the iconic franchise games, and, prior to that, had periods at 2K and Electronic Arts.

Title Details and Vision

Project Ethos was unveiled in October 2024 alongside a public demo. Then, 31st Union presented the title as a "no-cost, 3rd-person action-packed experience and an thrilling evolution on the style."

"Create your ideal gameplay session—or face defeat—in this engaging over-the-shoulder adventure! Build your hero in real-time to suit your personal playstyle," the official summary reads. "Face the opponents with new abilities, challenges, and obstacles that shift every match. Do you leave securely with your collected items? Or go big, put it on the line, and trust your squad can secure victory? The decision is up to you."

Project Ethos has not yet received an official debut schedule or consoles, but players can look forward to further news as production progresses.