Joe Blackburn, Destiny 2‘s longstanding game director, has publicly confirmed in a new Twitter thread that they are embarking on “a new adventure outside the walls of Bungie”.
Next month, The Final Shape will be hitting one of its most critical internal milestones: a ritual we call the End-to-End playtest.
This ritual has been a key part of development since Forsaken.
— Joe Blackburn (@joegoroth) January 31, 2024
Blackburn went on to explain that “as we hit End-to-End next month, Tyson Green will take the reins as D2 Game Director”
Tyson Green is likely to be recognized by fans for his work on the Halo franchise. According to Blackburn, Green also worked on Myth 2, Bungie’s real-time tactics game from the late 1990s.
Both colleagues and fans immediately expressed strong support for Green in his new leadership post.
Heading into this milestone, I’ve gotten to play 100s of hours of The Final Shape, and what the world-class talent here at Bungie has created has quickly become of the things I’m most proud to have worked on throughout my career.
— Joe Blackburn (@joegoroth) January 31, 2024
Fans may expect little change as they have been a Bungie staple for so long. Fans expect Green to continue to innovate and be as passionate as Blackburn.
This surprising change comes just ahead of Destiny 2’s highly anticipated expansion The Final Shape.
The update will conclude a significant chapter in Destiny 2’s continuing story. However, in November, The Final Shape was postponed until June.
Bungie stated that the team is “taking the time we need to deliver an even bigger and bolder vision”.
There was a focus on adding even more content. Bungie just announced that Destiny 2 will finally enable character customization.
Studios typically delay to address technical concerns. A smooth debut would undoubtedly be ideal after fans put so much time into the plot. Fans have been patient and understanding.
In the interim, Bungie worked on Fireteam Finder. Bungie conducted a stress test for the feature in November before releasing a beta in December.
According to Blackburn’s new thread, The Final Shape will shortly receive “multiple days of consecutive internal playtesting”.