With an announcement of astronomical proportions, developer Bungie has announced their departure from their publishing partnership with Activision. In doing so, Bungie has also announced that they will retain publishing rights to the Destiny IP.
In a release by Bungie, the developer detailed the process moving forward, which has already entered the processes of completing the transition. “When we first launched our partnership with Activision in 2010, the gaming industry was in a pretty different place” the developer stated. “As an independent studio setting out to build a brand new experience, we wanted a partner willing to take a big leap of faith with us. We have enjoyed a successful eight-year run and would like to thank Activision for their partnership on Destiny. Looking ahead, we’re excited to announce plans for Activision to transfer publishing rights for Destiny to Bungie. With our remarkable Destiny community, we are ready to publish on our own, while Activision will increase their focus on owned IP projects.”
For a few months now, rumors have began to appear leaning towards tensions between the Destiny developer and publisher Activision, with Jason Schreier mentioning the rift dating back before the first title even shipped. Earlier today, Schreier reported that he had gained knowledge that Bungie was scheduled to have a team meeting, saying “the buzz around the studio is that it’s “good news” for them.” He declined to share more details at the time, but broke the story as soon as the word was official. Schreier also stated that at the meeting today, the staff cheered loudly for the announcement, expressing their excitement to fully own the Destiny IP and to no longer feel weighed down by Activision’s restrictive annualized schedule.
“With Forsaken, we’ve learned, and listened, and leaned in to what we believe our players want from a great Destiny experience” the team continued in the release. “Rest assured there is more of that on the way. We’ll continue to deliver on the existing Destiny roadmap, and we’re looking forward to releasing more seasonal experiences in the coming months, as well as surprising our community with some exciting announcements about what lies beyond.”
Following their split from Microsoft in 2007 to become an independently owned studio, Bungie continued to develop exclusively for Microsoft’s then-current console, Xbox 360. In 2010, they then signed a 10 year publishing agreement with Activision. Schreier also points out that the developer showed the same excitement when leaving Microsoft at the time.
We will continue to provide updates on the situation as more information becomes known.
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