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The renowned publisher has appointed Ben Brinkman from the creators of Apex Legends to lead the development team at 31st Union, which is currently working on the forthcoming third-person action-packed title known as this innovative game.

Leadership Shift Follows Poor Feedback

Brinkman assumes the leadership position at 31st Union following the departure of previous head Michael Condrey, who was reportedly let go due to the game's lackluster early showing last autumn.

On Wednesday, 2K president David Ismailer notified staff about this organizational change through an internal memo, which emphasized that early feedback sessions had revealed the requirement for a clearer game identity.

Ismailer stated that the team is now refining the project with a renewed approach, aiming to address community desires.

Trend of Strategic Recruitment

The news follows a similar move taken by 2K Games in the summer, when they brought on Rod Fergusson from the Diablo team to assist with the BioShock studio Cloud Chamber.

Here is the entire message from Ismailer's communication:

Dear Team—

I understand you all just finished your town hall - I hope you’re as excited as I am with the good news. Last time I sent you all a update, I stated the following: “I am confident in this crew. You all are some of the most motivated and innovative designers we have had the opportunity to collaborate with - and we’re excited for that collaboration to persist.”

Given your hard work and versatility, especially over the past twelve months, you continue to prove that.

The gamer responses from last fall’s the game playtest was enlightening. It confirmed the potential of a action-packed game but told us we still had work to do. It highlighted the requirement for a sharper brand.

The progress is encouraging to see how far you’ve advanced. You took the input to mind and revamped the title with a refreshed goal - one that’s poised to fulfill its promise to our players.

The belief in this project grows every day. To advance the incredible progress you’ve made, It is a pleasure to introduce the new hire as the incoming Lead of the team. After some time of discussions, he starts with us on next week.

His leadership and background in the competitive gaming genre is vast, having devoted the past decade and a half producing and managing some of the most popular series in the industry, including Call of Duty: Black Ops, and lately, the battle royale hit.

Let’s together in greeting Ben soon. We are all eager to continue observing the development of the game in the months to ahead.

The President

Experience of the Incoming Leader

Brinkman currently serves in the role of executive producer and production lead at the renowned studio for their flagship title. Brinkman earlier worked at Treyarch and Activision in various production roles on the Call of Duty series, and, prior to that, had assignments at 2K and Electronic Arts.

Title Details and Concept

The upcoming game was announced in October 2024 together with a community playtest. Then, the developers portrayed the game as a "free-to-play, 3rd-person roguelike hero shooter and an exciting evolution on the category."

"Build your perfect run—or die trying—in this 3rd-person action shooter! Build your hero in real-time to match your preferred approach," the description explains. "Face the competition with fresh skills, risks, and obstacles that shift every match. Will you leave securely with your collected items? Or aim high, risk it all, and trust your group can secure victory? The choice is up to you."

Project Ethos does not have an announced launch window or supported systems, but players can anticipate more updates as development progresses.