2K Games hasn’t said much about its free-to-play third-person shooter currently in the works under the working title Project Ethos, but the game is not being abandoned.
2K Games shared a memo from 2K President David Ismailer today in which the executive confirmed that it has hired Ben Brinkman to take over as studio head for developer 31st Union. The company’s previous boss, former Call of Duty executive Michael Condrey, left the studio earlier this year.
Ismailer said in a memo to staff that the feedback from the Project Ethos test in Fall 2024 was “enlightening” for the studio. “It affirmed the promise of a roguelike shooter but told us we still had work to do. It uncovered the need for a more distinct identity,” Ismailer said.
The executive said he believes the “renewed vision” for Project Ethos is one that is “poised to deliver on its promise to our players.”
He went on: “Our confidence in Project Ethos grows every day.”
Brinkman is a veteran of the shooter space, having most recently spent five years at Respawn as executive producer for Apex Legends. Before that, he was an executive producer for the Call of Duty series at Activision from 2008 to 2020. He’s actually returning to 2K, as he was a producer at the company from July 2006 to March 2008.
GameSpot’s hands-on preview of Project Ethos said the game was “delightfully different” but lacked an identity. Exactly what this “renewed vision” is remains to be seen, nor do we know when 2K may share more details about the game or show it off again.
In February, it was reported that Project Ethos would have to “pivot or be killed.”
The hiring of Brinkman and “renewed vision” for Project Ethos comes just after EA announced that it was in the process of selling itself to an investor consortium led by Saudi Arabia for $55 billion.
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