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The renowned publisher has appointed Ben Brinkman from Respawn Entertainment to direct the development team at their internal studio, which is currently working on the anticipated third-person action-packed title known as this innovative game.

Leadership Transition Comes After Poor Response

The new appointee assumes the role of studio head at 31st Union following the dismissal of previous head Michael Condrey, who was removed from his post due to the game's lackluster initial reveal last autumn.

Recently, the company's top executive a key figure informed employees about this organizational change through an internal memo, which stressed that early feedback sessions had indicated the requirement for a more defined vision.

The president noted that the team is now overhauling the project with a renewed vision, aiming to satisfy gamer demands.

Trend of Key Hires

This announcement echoes a comparable move taken by the publisher in the summer, when they recruited Rod Fergusson from Blizzard to assist with the beloved franchise development group.

Here is the complete message from Ismailer's memo:

Hello Everyone—

I know you all just completed your gathering - I trust you’re as enthusiastic as I am with the recent updates. Previously I sent you all a update, I expressed the following: “I am confident in this group. You all are some of the most motivated and talented designers we have had the chance to collaborate with - and we’re looking forward for that relationship to continue.”

With your dedication and versatility, particularly over the past twelve months, you continue to prove that.

The player input from last fall’s Project ETHOS testing phase was enlightening. It validated the appeal of a action-packed game but indicated we still had refinements needed. It uncovered the requirement for a clearer brand.

The progress is encouraging to see how far you’ve come. You embraced the input to mind and overhauled Project ETHOS with a renewed vision - one that’s ready to deliver on its potential to our audience.

The trust in Project ETHOS increases every day. To advance the outstanding progress you’ve made, It is a pleasure to welcome Ben Brinkman as the incoming Director of the team. After some time of conversations, he officially joins us on next week.

His management and background in the PVP shooter space is vast, having dedicated the past decade and a half developing and managing some of the most popular series in the industry, such as Call of Duty: Black Ops, and more recently, the battle royale hit.

Let’s together in receiving Ben in the coming days. We are all excited to continue observing the evolution of the game in the weeks to ahead.

The President

Background of the New Leader

Brinkman currently serves in the role of executive producer and production lead at Respawn Entertainment for their flagship title. Brinkman previously was employed at Treyarch and Activision in diverse development positions on the Call of Duty games, and, before that, had stints at other industry leaders.

Game Details and Concept

The upcoming game was unveiled in October 2024 together with a community playtest. Then, the developers portrayed the title as a "free-to-play, third-person perspective action-packed experience and an thrilling evolution on the style."

"Build your perfect run—or die trying—in this 3rd-person action shooter! Build your hero in live gameplay to match your preferred approach," the game's pitch states. "Take on the competition with fresh skills, stakes, and obstacles that change every match. Do you safely extract with your hard-earned loot? Or go big, put it on the line, and hope your squad can earn top ranking? The option is in your hands."

Project Ethos does not have an confirmed debut schedule or platforms, but enthusiasts can look forward to further news as creation continues.