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The renowned publisher has welcomed Ben Brinkman from the creators of Apex Legends to lead the studio crew at 31st Union, which is currently developing the upcoming third-person roguelike extraction-shooter known as Project Ethos.

Management Transition Follows Poor Feedback

The new appointee takes on the leadership position at 31st Union following the departure of previous head the ex-Sledgehammer Games executive, who was removed from his post due to Project Ethos' lackluster unveiling last fall.

On Wednesday, the company's top executive David Ismailer updated staff about this strategic move through an official communication, which highlighted that playtesting had shown the need for a distinct direction.

The president stated that the team is now refining Project Ethos with a revised vision, aiming to better meet gamer demands.

Trend of Strategic Hires

This announcement mirrors a comparable action taken by 2K Games in August, when they recruited an industry veteran from Blizzard to work on the BioShock development group.

Here is the full content from the president's announcement:

Dear Team—

I understand you all just wrapped up your gathering - I trust you’re as thrilled as I am with the recent updates. Last time I shared you all a update, I expressed the following: “I am confident in this crew. You all are some of the most motivated and innovative developers we have had the pleasure to work with - and we’re excited for that collaboration to persist.”

With your dedication and flexibility, especially over the last year, you repeatedly show that.

The player input from last autumn’s Project ETHOS testing phase was informative. It confirmed the potential of a roguelike shooter but told us we still had refinements needed. It highlighted the requirement for a more distinct brand.

It’s been inspiring to see how far you’ve come. You accepted the feedback to heart and revamped the title with a renewed goal - one that’s poised to deliver on its ambition to our audience.

Our confidence in Project ETHOS grows every day. To advance the remarkable progress you’ve made, I’m excited to welcome the new hire as the latest Lead of the team. Following some time of conversations, he officially joins us on the specified date.

Ben’s guidance and experience in the PVP shooter field is considerable, having devoted the recent years developing and leading some of the most well-known titles in gaming, including the acclaimed shooter, and more recently, the battle royale hit.

Let’s together in receiving him next week. We are all looking forward to persist seeing the progress of the game in the weeks to follow.

David

Background of the New Head

The appointee presently holds the position of executive producer and production lead at Respawn Entertainment for their flagship title. He earlier worked at Treyarch and Activision in various production roles on the Call of Duty series, and, earlier in his career, had assignments at other industry leaders.

Game Details and Concept

Project Ethos was unveiled in last year together with a early access event. At the time, the developers described the title as a "no-cost, 3rd-person action-packed experience and an thrilling evolution on the category."

"Create your ideal gameplay session—or face defeat—in this engaging over-the-shoulder adventure! Build your hero in real-time to suit your personal playstyle," the official summary explains. "Take on the opponents with new abilities, challenges, and obstacles that shift every round. Will you leave securely with your collected items? Alternatively go big, gamble everything, and hope your squad can secure victory? The option is in your hands."

The game does not have an confirmed release date or supported systems, but fans can look forward to further news as development progresses.