Destiny’s Head of Transmedia has left Bungie

Despite the lack of an official announcement, it appears that Derick Tsai, Destiny's Head of Transmedia Projects, left Bungie in March 2023 after more than a year at the company.

The details:

• Tsai joined the former Halo developer in January 2022 and was tasked with overseeing the Destiny IP's expansion into mediums other than video games, such as film, television, books, and animation. Tsai appears to be no longer with Bungie as of March 2023, as both his Twitter and LinkedIn profiles state that the company is now his former employer, though neither Sony nor Bungie officially confirmed his departure. It is unknown why he decided to leave the company and there have been no updates on where Tsai will end up next.
• Tsai previously worked as a director and producer for Riot Games' short films set in the universe of the MOBA League of Legends before jumping ship to the Destiny developer after it announced its interest in expanding beyond the realm of video games. Despite the initial mention, Destiny has yet to be adapted outside of video games, which may prove difficult given the massive amount of lore. Following the tech giant's acquisition of Bungie, Sony Chief Financial Officer Hiroki Totoki stated that the company could use both Sony Pictures and Sony Music to carry out its plans and grow the IP.
• It's also worth noting that Tsai has included a Forbes article about a rumored Destiny animated series in his LinkedIn employment history, possibly inadvertently confirming that it exists, even if it hasn't been officially announced. A job posting in 2022 suggested that the series was in the works, though it was later updated to include other forms of media in addition to animation.

More departures and layoffs in gaming:

• After decades at Microsoft, Halo veterans Joseph Staten and Frank O'Connor have left the company. Staten has since joined Netflix Games as a creative director, but it's unclear where O'Connor will go next. Their departures follow the exits of several high-profile 343 Industries employees over the last year, following numerous reports of mismanagement at the studio.
• Meta has reportedly laid off roughly one-third of the staff at its VR-focused studio, Ready at Dawn, including the studio's head, with Downpour Interactive also affected. According to a former employee, Ready at Dawn has lost approximately half of its workforce due to attrition since August 2022, with tens of thousands of layoffs at Meta occurring in the past year.