Bungie leadership has spoken on the future of Destiny and Marathon, as the studio seeks to win back the trust of its players.

In a statement released last night, newly appointed studio head Poria Torkan and Marathon General Manager Josh Deane outlined “the next chapter for Bungie” and their vision for the future.

“Bungie has been creating games for over 30 years and we have welcomed the communities that have formed around them,” the statement reads.

“Over the last few years, we lost sight of that, and there have been real consequences. We lost trust, we lost incredible colleagues, and we lost sight of what we should be prioritizing most, our players.

“As a new leadership team, we must own that.

“We aren’t just listening to feedback, we understand your disappointment. We are not asking you to trust what we say today. We know that trust must be earned through the quality of our games, the decisions we make, and how consistently we show up for our players.”

The pair’s first order of business was adressing the future of Destiny. In June, Bungie released the Monument of Triumph update, which marked the end of Destiny 2’s live-service content updates. In the weeks that followed, “significant” cuts were made at the studio, with reports suggesting that 292 employees were let go, affecting “most” of the Destiny team.

For many fans, news of the layoffs and the end of content updates was considered the end of an era, with seemingly no plans for the future of the Destiny franchise in sight.

Fast forward to today, and the message from Torkan and Deane is simple: “We are not done with Destiny.”

“When we announced that Monuments of Triumph would be the final content update to Destiny 2, you responded in force,” the statement read. “Your voices mattered, and the way you showed up made a real impact.

“You reminded everyone how much this world, its history, and its future still mean to you.

“Destiny is foundational to Bungie’s future. We have more stories to tell, new worlds to build, but we have to do it right and give our teams the time they need to do justice to this amazing universe.”

While the pair stopped short of mentioning what the long-term future of the franchise will look like, it was confirmed that previously vaulted content such as campaigns, destinations and raids, would return to Destiny 2.

“We want to return Destiny to its original promise, to recapture the qualities that have always made it special. The awe-inspiring mystery, meaningful discovery, and a community of Guardians coming together against impossible odds.

“That begins with restoring important parts of Destiny 2’s history that players can no longer experience today.

“We understand that removing these experiences had a lasting impact on player trust and enjoyment of Destiny. Destiny 2 is more than just the content itself. It is a place where players have built memories together, formed lasting friendships, and shared experiences that have stayed with them for years.

“We cannot change the decision we made, but we can acknowledge its impact and do the work to make it right by restoring these important parts of Destiny’s history.”

The pair warned that the reintroduction of vaulted content “will take time”, as the process is “not as simple as restoring old files”. While no specific timeframe was given, Bungie has promised to share more details in the coming months.

Torkan and Deane then moved on to addressing the future of Bungie’s troubled extraction shooter Marathon, which the pair explicitly state was “never intended to replace Destiny”.

“Marathon is an important part of shaping where Bungie goes next, but it was never intended to replace Destiny,” the pair said.

“The game launched to strong critical reception, and the players who embraced Marathon connected deeply with what makes it distinct. At the same time, it did not reach as many players as we had hoped, and we also know and understand that the game needs to evolve.”

The pair say that moving forward, the Marathon team are going to “anchor on what makes Marathon special” while also pushing the game “beyond the genre constraints” that were placed on it by expanding the game into a “deeper survival experience”.

“Through the remainder of Marathon’s first year, we will continue strengthening its combat, world, and competitive tension while giving players more agency in how they engage with the game. That means creating meaningful experiences whether you prefer cooperative PvE, competitive PvP, or the unpredictable tension of Marathon PvPvE.

“It’s important to us that no matter your playstyle, or your skill level…. we find better ways to hear from you as we get back to where we need to be: making games you want to play.”

The statement also confirmed that more information on Bungie’s “future vision for Marathon” would be revealed later this week, including details on the game’s Nightfall Refresh (due in October) and Symbiosis update (due in December).

In the statement’s closing remarks, Torkan and Deane recognised that this moment is “an important time for Bungie”, with the studio looking to get back on track by rebuilding its trust with players.

“Our future depends on making clear choices about where we focus, delivering what we say we will, and being honest about our successes and failures,” the pair said. “Stability doesn’t mean shrinking our ambition. It just means that we have to focus on the things you want to see from us, and making sure our vision matches our reality.

“How we bring this new Bungie to life has to be through the spirit of putting players at the forefront of what we do. We have to find a way back to making games that we want to play, but with you at the center.

“Trust won’t be rebuilt through a single blog, video, or release. We also understand that trust extends beyond gameplay. It includes how we value your time, how we communicate, and how we action your feedback. Listening without action means nothing.

“There is still a great deal of work ahead and challenges to overcome, but we believe deeply in this studio, our people, and the games we are building. But belief is not enough,” the pair concluded. “It’s on us to prove progress through what we deliver.

“Thank you for continuing to challenge us, and for caring so deeply about the worlds we create.

“Keep holding us accountable. We are ready to do the work.”