Sony’s President, Hiroki Totoki, has urged Bungie, the studio behind the popular live-service game Destiny 2, to improve its accountability for development timelines and business practices. This comes amidst recent delays to the upcoming expansion, The Final Shape, and reports of financial challenges faced by the studio.

While praising Bungie’s development talent and expertise in live-service games, Totoki expressed concerns during a recent Q&A session. He stated that he sees “room for improvement from a business perspective with regard to areas such as the use of business expenses and assuming accountability for development timelines.”

This call for improvement follows reports of Bungie’s struggles with Destiny 2 player retention and missed financial targets. These shortcomings reportedly led to internal restructuring and layoffs at the studio. Additionally, The Final Shape was officially delayed from its original February 27th, 2024 release date to June 4th, 2024.

The timing of Totoki’s comments has raised questions about the future of Bungie’s independence. When Sony acquired Bungie in 2022, the studio was promised continued independence, including self-publishing and multi-platform availability for their games. However, recent reports suggest that Bungie’s board structure and autonomy might be contingent on achieving specific financial benchmarks.

While the exact details of Sony’s expectations and potential consequences for Bungie remain unclear, the situation highlights the complexities of navigating the relationship between recently acquired studios and large corporations. With the future of Destiny 2 and Bungie’s independence potentially hanging in the balance, the success of The Final Shape could be pivotal for both parties.