Bungie reportedly warned employees of the “sharp decline” in Destiny 2’s popularity before the layoffs

Yesterday’s layoffs at Destiny 2 developer Bungie reportedly affected 100 employees — roughly 8% of its 1,200-person workforce — and occurred just weeks after management warned employees that revenue for the year was well below expectations.

this According to Bloomberg, which reports that Bungie employees were issued “dire management warnings” that revenues were 45 percent below expectations just two weeks ago. The slump was said to be a result of Destiny 2’s “sharp decline” in popularity, with Bungie CEO Pete Parsons reportedly highlighting poor player retention at the time.

At the same meeting, according to Bloomberg sources in attendance, Parsons told staff that Destiny 2’s next expansion, The Final Shape — which concludes the game’s existing Light and Darkness saga — was getting only “good” and not “great” feedback. As such, management was planning to delay its release to improve the product.

Parsons is also said to have outlined cost-cutting measures during the meeting, along with a pay and hiring freeze, and told staff they would have to “work together to weather the storm”. However, a large number of employees are said to have started their Monday morning yesterday with a mysterious 15-minute meeting on their agenda, where they will eventually be informed of their termination from the company.

About 8 percent — about 100 employees — were laid off, primarily from the company’s support departments, including community management and publishing, Bloomberg says, based on documents reviewed by the newspaper. All affected workers will reportedly receive at least three months’ severance pay and three months of COBRA health insurance paid to Bungie, but the additional benefits are said to have ended on Monday.

Bloomberg says the layoffs are part of a “larger money-saving initiative” at PlayStation, which has also led to job cuts at Media Molecule, Naughty Dog and other areas of the business.

Following news of the layoffs at Bungie, Parsons took to social media to call it a “sad day” for the studio. “What these exceptional individuals have contributed to our games and Bungie’s culture has been tremendous and will continue to be a part of Bungie long into the future,” he wrote. “These are really talented people.”