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By Brian Crecente, Variety
“Destiny” developer Bungie Thursday announced plans for Activision to transfer publishing rights back to the game’s creator.
“We have enjoyed a successful eight-year run and would like to thank Activision for their partnership on Destiny,” Bungie
wrote in a post on its site Thursday. “Looking ahead, we’re excited to
announce plans for Activision to transfer publishing rights for Destiny
to Bungie. With our remarkable Destiny community, we are ready to
publish on our own, while Activision will increase their focus on owned
IP projects.
“The planned transition process is already underway
in its early stages, with Bungie and Activision both committed to making
sure the handoff is as seamless as possible.”
The game will
continue to receive “full support on BattleNet and we do not anticipate
any disruption to our services or your gameplay experience,” according
to a Tweet from the official Blizzard account.
In a joint
statement released by Activision and Bungie Thursday, the companies said
that going forward Bungie will own and develop the franchise, and
Activision will “Increase its focus on owned IP and other projects.
“Activision
and Bungie are committed to a seamless transition for the Destiny
franchise and will continue to work closely together during the
transition on behalf of the community of Destiny players around the
world.”
In a filing with the SEC Thursday, Activision wrote that
as a result of the deal the company “does not expect to recognize
material revenue, operating income or operating loss from the Destiny
franchise in 2019.”
The original “Destiny” was developed by Bungie
and published by Activision as part of a ten-year agreement between the
two companies. Development on the game started in 2010. The original
title was released in 2014, the sequel, “Destiny 2,” was released in 2017.
In
announcing the “Destiny” news Thursday, Bungie noted that the game
industry was in a pretty different place when the two companies first
launched their partnership in 2010.
“As an independent studio
setting out to build a brand new experience, we wanted a partner willing
to take a big leap of faith with us,” according to the post. “We had a
vision for Destiny that we believed in, but to launch a game of that
magnitude, we needed the support of an established publishing partner.
“With
Activision, we created something special. To date, Destiny has
delivered a combination of over 50 million games and expansions to
players all around the world. More importantly, we’ve also witnessed a
remarkable community – tens of millions of Guardians strong – rise up
and embrace Destiny, to play together, to make and share memories, and
even to do truly great things that reach far beyond the game we share,
to deliver a positive impact on people’s everyday lives.”
Bungie pointed to its release of “Destiny 2:
Forsaken” as a sign of how the company has “learned, and listened, and
leaned in to what we believe our players want from a great ‘Destiny’
experience.”
“Rest assured there is more of that on the way,” the
studio wrote. “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.”
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