2K Brings Onboard Apex Legends Lead to Rescue Challenged Action Game Project Ethos

2K Games has welcomed Ben Brinkman from Respawn Entertainment to direct the studio crew at their internal studio, which is currently working on the upcoming over-the-shoulder action-packed title known as Project Ethos.

Leadership Shift Comes After Lukewarm Reception

Brinkman steps into the role of studio head at 31st Union following the exit of former leader the ex-Sledgehammer Games executive, who was removed from his post due to Project Ethos' underwhelming unveiling last fall.

On Wednesday, 2K president a key figure notified team members about this organizational change through an official communication, which emphasized that playtesting had shown the need for a distinct vision.

The president expressed that the developers is now reimagining Project Ethos with a renewed focus, aiming to better meet player expectations.

A Pattern of Key Recruitment

The news echoes a comparable step taken by the publisher in August, when they hired an industry veteran from the Diablo team to work on the BioShock development group.

Here is the entire text from the president's memo:

Team—

I understand you all just finished your gathering - I trust you’re as enthusiastic as I am with the good news. Last time I sent you all a update, I mentioned the following: “I am confident in this group. You all are some of the most driven and creative creators we have had the opportunity to collaborate with - and we’re eager for that relationship to continue.”

Through your commitment and versatility, particularly over the last year, you continue to prove that.

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

It’s been inspiring to see how far you’ve progressed. You took the feedback to consideration and overhauled Project ETHOS with a renewed goal - one that’s ready to achieve its ambition to our players.

The trust in this project strengthens every day. To boost the remarkable progress you’ve made, I’m excited to introduce Ben Brinkman as the latest Studio Head of 31st Union. Following a period of conversations, Ben officially joins us on Monday, October 20.

Ben’s leadership and expertise in the competitive gaming genre is vast, having dedicated the past decade and a half developing and managing some of the most popular series in the industry, for example Call of Duty: Black Ops, and most recently, Apex Legends.

Let’s together in receiving Ben next week. We are all eager to continue witnessing the development of the game in the months to come.

The President

Background of the Incoming Head

Brinkman presently serves in the position of executive producer and head of production at the renowned studio for Apex Legends. He earlier was employed at major gaming companies in multiple development positions on the Call of Duty games, and, before that, had assignments at other industry leaders.

Title Details and Vision

Project Ethos was revealed in last year together with a community playtest. Then, 31st Union described the game as a "no-cost, third-person perspective action-packed experience and an innovative advancement on the genre."

"Build your perfect run—or die trying—in this 3rd-person action shooter! Build your hero in real-time to match your preferred approach," the game's pitch explains. "Face the rivals with unique powers, risks, and challenges that change every session. Do you leave securely with your valuable rewards? Or take a risk, risk it all, and trust your group can achieve the highest spot? The choice is up to you."

The game lacks an official debut schedule or platforms, but enthusiasts can anticipate more updates as creation progresses.