Update, August 1, 11:20 PT: Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier shared some context around the canceled Destiny project, saying it was never a “Destiny 3” but rather a spinoff title that was canceled a while ago.
“Just to clear up some rumors floating around, Destiny 3 was not canceled because it was never in development, per people familiar. Bungie did some very early work on a spinoff project called Payback, but they canceled that a while ago. I’ll have a story tomorrow with more info“
Original Story: Bungie has reportedly canceled the rumored Destiny project codenamed ‘Payback,’ which many believed to be the next installment in the Destiny franchise, commonly referred to as Destiny 3.
Earlier this year, speculation ran high as a leak suggested that Bungie was working on a new Destiny game under the codename ‘Payback.’ Fans eagerly anticipated the potential continuation of the popular series, hoping for new adventures and expansions within the Destiny universe.
However, this excitement was met with disappointment as recent developments have cast a shadow over the project’s future. Earlier this week, Bungie made headlines with the announcement of a significant workforce reduction, laying off 17% of its staff, amounting to approximately 220 employees.
This decision has left many fans and industry insiders concerned about the company’s future direction and the fate of its ongoing projects.
Destiny 3 Canceled?
Adding to the uncertainty, credible insider Jeff Grubb revealed in today’s Game Mess Mornings that one of the projects affected by these layoffs was none other than ‘Payback.’ According to Grubb, the game, which was internally referred to as “the next Destiny” instead of “Destiny 3”, has been shelved.
“What is going on the shelf is Payback. This is what was also leaked and reported to be maybe Destiny 3– technically not Destiny 3. Internally, they would refer to it as ‘the next Destiny’. I don’t know if the distinction is there, but they think there’s a distinction there.
“But that is going on the shelf indefinitely, according to the people I’ve talked to. Either way, let’s be clear, a ‘Destiny 3’ or ‘next Destiny’ is just not the thing that they are going to be coming out of this looking toward let alone working on in any real way.”
The cancellation of ‘Payback’ raises questions about the future of the Destiny franchise. With Bungie focusing its efforts on supporting Destiny 2 and its upcoming expansions, the decision to halt ‘Payback’ suggests a shift in the company’s strategy.
While the details of the canceled project remain under wraps, the community’s hopes for Destiny 3 have been dashed for the time being. As for Destiny 2, The Final Shape expansion made it into the top 5 highest revenue-generating titles for June 2024, per a new report.
