🔗 Share this article

The renowned publisher has welcomed Ben Brinkman from Respawn Entertainment to oversee the development team at 31st Union, which is currently developing the anticipated over-the-shoulder roguelike extraction-shooter known as this innovative game.

Management Change Comes After Lukewarm Response

The new appointee takes on the leadership position at the development studio following the exit of previous head Michael Condrey, who was removed from his post due to Project Ethos' lackluster initial reveal last autumn.

On Wednesday, the company's top executive a key figure updated employees about this strategic move through an internal memo, which highlighted that playtesting had shown the necessity for a clearer direction.

Ismailer expressed that the team is now refining Project Ethos with a revised vision, aiming to satisfy community desires.

Trend of Strategic Hires

The news mirrors a similar action taken by the publisher in August, when they brought on an industry veteran from the Diablo team to work on the BioShock studio Cloud Chamber.

Here is the entire content from the president's communication:

Team—

I know you all just completed your town hall - I trust you’re as excited as I am with the good news. Last time I shared you all a update, I mentioned the following: “I believe in this group. You all are some of the most driven and talented creators we have had the pleasure to partner with - and we’re excited for that relationship to persist.”

Through your commitment and flexibility, especially over the past twelve months, you consistently demonstrate that.

The gamer responses from last autumn’s Project ETHOS playtest was informative. It confirmed the appeal of a roguelike shooter but indicated we still had improvements to make. It revealed the necessity for a more distinct brand.

The progress is encouraging to see how far you’ve come. You took the feedback to consideration and revamped Project ETHOS with a revitalized vision - one that’s positioned to deliver on its potential to our players.

The trust in this project increases every day. To boost the incredible advancement you’ve made, I’m excited to introduce the new hire as the new Lead of the team. After several months of conversations, Ben comes aboard us on the specified date.

Ben’s leadership and background in the PVP shooter field is extensive, having devoted the last 15 years producing and leading some of the most well-known series in the industry, for example Call of Duty: Black Ops, and more recently, Apex Legends.

I invite you all in greeting Ben next week. We are all excited to continue observing the evolution of the game in the months to ahead.

The President

Experience of the Incoming Leader

The appointee presently holds the role of executive producer and production lead at the renowned studio for Apex Legends. He earlier worked at Treyarch and Activision in diverse development positions on the Call of Duty series, and, prior to that, had assignments at other industry leaders.

Game Details and Concept

Project Ethos was announced in last year in conjunction with a community playtest. Initially, 31st Union described the game as a "free-to-play, 3rd-person roguelike hero shooter and an innovative evolution on the style."

"Create your ideal gameplay session—or face defeat—in this engaging over-the-shoulder adventure! Build your hero in live gameplay to suit your personal playstyle," the game's pitch explains. "Take on the rivals with fresh skills, risks, and tests that shift every round. Do you safely extract with your hard-earned loot? Or aim high, gamble everything, and pray your squad can secure victory? The choice is up to you."

Project Ethos does not have an announced debut schedule or supported systems, but players can anticipate further news as development advances.