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The renowned publisher has welcomed a seasoned producer from the creators of Apex Legends to oversee the studio crew at 31st Union, which is currently working on the anticipated third-person roguelike extraction-shooter known as Project Ethos.

Management Shift Comes After Poor Response

Brinkman assumes the leadership position at 31st Union following the dismissal of previous head Michael Condrey, who was removed from his post due to Project Ethos' disappointing initial reveal last fall.

On Wednesday, the company's top executive a key figure updated team members about this decision through an official communication, which emphasized that early feedback sessions had shown the need for a distinct game identity.

The president expressed that the team is now overhauling Project Ethos with a revised focus, aiming to satisfy community desires.

Trend of Key Acquisitions

The news follows a similar step taken by 2K Games in the summer, when they brought on an industry veteran from the Diablo team to work on the beloved franchise development group.

Below is the complete text from the president's memo:

Dear Team—

I understand you all just completed your town hall - I trust you’re as enthusiastic as I am with the positive developments. Previously I shared you all a update, I mentioned the following: “I am confident in this team. You all are some of the most driven and creative developers we have had the chance to work with - and we’re excited for that partnership to continue.”

Given your hard work and versatility, particularly over the last year, you continue to prove that.

The community feedback from last autumn’s the game demo was revealing. It confirmed the appeal of a action-packed game but indicated we still had improvements to make. It uncovered the need for a more distinct identity.

The progress is encouraging to see how far you’ve come. You accepted the input to consideration and overhauled Project ETHOS with a revitalized goal - one that’s ready to deliver on its potential to our audience.

Our confidence in this project strengthens every day. To boost the remarkable development you’ve made, I am thrilled to introduce the new hire as the new Director of 31st Union. Following several months of conversations, he starts with us on Monday, October 20.

His guidance and experience in the PVP shooter space is vast, having spent the last 15 years producing and leading some of the most recognizable franchises in the industry, for example Call of Duty: Black Ops, and lately, the battle royale hit.

Let’s together in greeting him in the coming days. We are all excited to keep seeing the development of the game in the time to ahead.

The President

Experience of the Incoming Head

The appointee currently serves in the position of senior developer and head of production at Respawn Entertainment for Apex Legends. Brinkman previously worked at Treyarch and Activision in multiple production roles on the Call of Duty series, and, prior to that, had assignments at 2K and Electronic Arts.

Title Information and Vision

Project Ethos was revealed in October 2024 in conjunction with a early access event. At the time, the developers described the game as a "no-cost, third-person perspective action-packed experience and an innovative evolution on the category."

"Build your perfect run—or die trying—in this 3rd-person action shooter! Build your hero in real-time to suit your personal playstyle," the game's pitch explains. "Challenge the competition with new abilities, challenges, and challenges that change every match. Do you withdraw carefully with your hard-earned loot? Alternatively go big, risk it all, and pray your group can secure victory? The option is yours."

The game has not yet received an official debut schedule or supported systems, but fans can anticipate additional details as development progresses.