Bungie gains total control of Destiny as the studio ends its partnership with Activision

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All right, all right, all right

Destiny developer Bungie and series publisher Activision are splitting up. In a blog post published today - appropriately titled 'Our Destiny' - Bungie announced "plans for Activision to transfer publishing rights for Destiny to Bungie," which will give the studio full ownership and control of the IP. 

Bungie says this process is already underway, and that both it and Activision are "committed to making sure the handoff is as seamless as possible." In a statement posted to Twitter, Activision said it "will increase its focus on owned IP and other projects" now that Destiny is off its roster. 

"With Forsaken, we’ve learned, and listened, and leaned in to what we believe our players want from a great Destiny experience," Bungie said. "Rest assured there is more of that on the way. We’ll continue to deliver on the existing Destiny roadmap, and we’re looking forward to releasing more seasonal experiences in the coming months, as well as surprising our community with some exciting announcements about what lies beyond." 

This separation comes just two months after Activision expressed its disappointment in Destiny 2's sales figures in a corporate earnings call. The publisher's pessimism came at a time when most players were happier than ever with Destiny - smack in the middle of the post-Forsaken renaissance - which led fans to wonder if Activision's goals for Destiny would compromise Bungie's vision for the game.  

Destiny 2 director Luke Smith responded to Activision's statements at the time, affirming that the folks at Bungie "are not disappointed with Forsaken." Smith's response was encouraging, and this separation sends a much clearer message. Bungie is going to do what it wants with Destiny, even if it has to do it on its own. 

Austin Wood
Austin Wood
Senior writer

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.