Bungie lays off another 220 staff, acknowledging it was "overly ambitious"

gamesindustry.biz:

Bungie is laying off 220 developers. That's 17% of its overall headcount.

Bungie boss Pete Parsons says the cuts are needed "to make substantial changes to our cost structure and focus development efforts entirely on Destiny and Marathon."

"This morning, I’m sharing with all of you some of the most difficult changes we’ve ever had to make as a studio," Parsons wrote in a statement posted to the studios' official website.

"Due to rising costs of development and industry shifts as well as enduring economic conditions, it has become clear that we need to make substantial changes to our cost structure and focus development efforts entirely on Destiny and Marathon."

"These actions will affect every level of the company, including most of our executive and senior leader roles," Parsons added.

"Today is a difficult and painful day, especially for our departing colleagues, all of which have made important and valuable contributions to Bungie. Our goal is to support them with the utmost care and respect. For everyone affected by this job reduction, we will be offering a generous exit package, including severance, bonus and health coverage," the statement continued.

"I realise all of this is hard news, especially following the success we have seen with The Final Shape. But as we’ve navigated the broader economic realities over the last year, and after exhausting all other mitigation options, this has become a necessary decision to refocus our studio and our business with more realistic goals and viable financials."

Parsons added that as of today, an additional 155 roles are moving into Sony Interactive Entertainment – that's around 12% of its staff – to "deepen [Bungie's] integration [with Sony]."

Another 75 people again are moving to work "with PlayStation Studios leadership to spin out one of our incubation projects – an action game set in a brand-new science-fantasy universe – to form a new studio within PlayStation Studios to continue its promising development."

"SIE has worked