Jeff Grubb: Hermen Hulst is now the man running Bungie, set to lose it's autonomy

[CrackmanNL]

Bungie is a fully owned SIE subsidiary since the acquisition, so Bungie reports to the SIE CEO since was acquired.

And Hermen is the CEO of SIE, replacing Jim. So since the moment Hermen became CEO Bungie nows reports to him.

Bungie's Amsterdam office only handles publishing and marketing and was open in February 2021, a year before they announced the acquisition. I highly doubt Hermen has nothing to do with it.

Office opened in 2022, just like the new HQ was footed by Sony. Hence Totoki spoke directly about Bungie regarding their financial discipline and age of growth in general. Acquisition talks and agreements don't go overnight, like Jim Ryan said this was not an answer to Activision, it was in the talks at least 5-6 months prior the news in Jan 2022. That said Amsterdam in general is an attractive spot for tech talent to work regardless.

Edit remembered this tweet:

Hermen was on the board. They were an independent subsidiary since that was the requirement of Bungie for acquisition. The board was split, Bungie CEO Pete Parsons had the tiebreaker vote, with fellow board members including PlayStation Studios boss Herman Hulst, Sony SVP Eric Lempel, Bungie CTO Luis Villegas and studio co-founder Jason Jones at the time. And to the report if Bungie doesn't meet the financials, Sony can take-over the board.

 

[Entropi]

Why would anyone trust that guy as a source?

 

[Old Gamer]

Nonsense. How how would he allow Bungie to disturb his vacations?

 

[anonpuffs]

I hope they fire Pete Parsons and replace him with someone who isn't a fucking loser

 

[Etifilio]

with how Hermen has been running PlayStation, i would not be shocked if Destiny 3 ships on Nintendo Switch and Xbox too, so nothing changes... Bungie is the biggest waste of Money in the entirety of the gaming industry, 3B+ dollars thrown in the trash can

 

[peter42O]

Great news if Hulst is now overseeing Bungie which is what it should have been since the beginning. Now, they just need to fire Pete Parsons and things will get better.

 

[JAHGamer]

The worst acquisition of all time, for 3.7 billion we could’ve got 5 better studios instead of this trash excuse of a company.

 

[JAHGamer]

with how Hermen has been running PlayStation, i would not be shocked if Destiny 3 ships on Nintendo Switch and Xbox too, so nothing changes... Bungie is the biggest waste of Money in the entirety of the gaming industry, 3B+ dollars thrown in the trash can

Since the acquisition was announced they already confirmed all future Bungie games will be multiplat….

 

[ethomaz]

People are taking this rumo as truth.

But Bungie’s employees are saying the opposite and who is taking these decisions are Pete Parsons and not Sony / Hermen.

The layoff are done as an independent Bungie decision.

 

[Shadow2027]

What horizon project will they work on

 

[Fenton]

The chuds will love this game

Incubation - Bungie Careers

At Bungie, we create worlds that inspire friendship. Founded in 1991, we've been doing it for nearly 30 years. Come join us!

careers.bungie.com

 

[Vertigo]

People are taking this rumo as truth.

But Bungie’s employees are saying the opposite and who is taking these decisions are Pete Parsons and not Sony / Hermen.

The layoff are done as an independent Bungie decision.

It was said that even if TFS sold well it wouldn’t be enough. Clearly Bungie made a bunch of spending mistakes thru Covid era and leading into the Sony buyout; they’re gonna be mitigating that damage for quite a bit I’d imagine. TFS looks to have sold similar to Lightfall (previous biggest expansion launch) but received well by both critics and fans. Engagement was also an issue for that year and that still remains to be seen for this year.

I interpret this rumor as having some truth… producing the Bungie Spin-off dev now created within the PlayStation studio umbrella. Bungie basically gave them a game in-dev and the talent for it and let them do their own thing under more direct PlayStation management. Or you could say Sony gut a piece of Bungie out to make something new.

I believe this is the concession made to keep Bungie sorta operating as it does with Parsons at the helm… but still with Herman on the board …. Obviously.

Whether that’s a good thing is for the future to say. Bungie is still one of the only SIE studio’s with consistent year to year content releases and revenue. This sorta speaks to the state of PlayStation in the year 2024 as whole.

The good news is that upwards hiring of more Bungie talent to SIE and the new studio. Hopefully benefitting many games.

 

[Zzero]

I think this was another measure to keep control. The fact that it was needed even after the current Destiny expansion's success means they're probably out of rope to cut and will be ousted after whenever the next financial checkup is.

 

[Vertigo]

I think this was another measure to keep control. The fact that it was needed even after the current Destiny expansion's success means they're probably out of rope to cut and will be ousted after whenever the next financial checkup is.

Which means Marathon can’t be delayed again. Another huge risk for them. If Marathon doesn’t do well I see them just sticking with Destiny 2 and rolling in the D3 stuff into. Because they can’t lose those constant revenues and pull off the throttle either. For a brand new wholesale D3 I think Marathon has to make bank.

All depends on what’s expected from Mararthon. Honestly… probably 15-30 million if in unit form… but who knows what the model will be…

 

[Shmunter]

Let’s Examine Hulst since becoming Head of PlayStation's Worldwide Studios in 2019.

Which do you like / dislike?


1. Expansion of PlayStation Studios: Hulst has led the growth and diversification of PlayStation Studios, overseeing the development of over 25 games, including new IPs and sequels. This includes notable titles such as *Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales*, *Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart*, *Returnal*, and *Horizon Forbidden West* [oai_citation:1,Herman Hulst Discusses The Future Of PlayStation And More In New Interview - PlayStation Universe](https://www.psu.com/news/herman-hulst-discusses-the-future-of-playstation-and-more-in-new-interview/) [oai_citation:2,Herman Hulst of Guerilla Games is Sony's new Head of Worldwide Studios](https://www.truetrophies.com/n17839/head-of-worldwide-studios).

2. Support for Indie Developers: Hulst has emphasized the importance of indie games, working closely with independent studios to bring unique and creative experiences to PlayStation platforms. This initiative has included collaborations and the inclusion of indie titles in the PlayStation ecosystem [oai_citation:3,Herman Hulst of Guerilla Games is Sony's new Head of Worldwide Studios](https://www.truetrophies.com/n17839/head-of-worldwide-studios).

3. Cross-Platform Expansion: Under his leadership, PlayStation has continued to explore cross-platform expansion, including bringing select games to PC. This strategy has expanded the reach of PlayStation games and allowed a broader audience to experience them [oai_citation:4,Herman Hulst Discusses The Future Of PlayStation And More In New Interview - PlayStation Universe](https://www.psu.com/news/herman-hulst-discusses-the-future-of-playstation-and-more-in-new-interview/).

4. Focus on Global Development: Hulst has fostered a truly global approach to game development, encouraging collaborations across studios in different regions, including Japan, Europe, and the Americas. This has resulted in a diverse lineup of games that cater to a wide range of tastes and cultures [oai_citation:5,Herman Hulst Discusses The Future Of PlayStation And More In New Interview - PlayStation Universe](https://www.psu.com/news/herman-hulst-discusses-the-future-of-playstation-and-more-in-new-interview/).

5. Media Expansion: Hulst has also been involved in expanding PlayStation's properties into other media, such as films and TV series. This includes the *Uncharted* movie and the upcoming *The Last of Us* TV show, which aim to broaden the audience for PlayStation's popular franchises [oai_citation:6,Hermen Hulst Q&A: Interview with Head of PlayStation’s Worldwide Studios – PlayStation.Blog](https://blog.playstation.com/2020/03/10/hermen-hulst-qa-interview-with-head-of-playstations-worldwide-studios/comment-page-3/).

6. PS5 Launch and Success: Hulst played a crucial role during the launch of the PlayStation 5, ensuring a strong lineup of games and supporting the transition to the next-generation console. The PS5 has become Sony's most profitable console generation to date, reflecting the successful execution of the launch strategy [oai_citation:7,Herman Hulst Discusses The Future Of PlayStation And More In New Interview - PlayStation Universe](https://www.psu.com/news/herman-hulst-discusses-the-future-of-playstation-and-more-in-new-interview/).

These accomplishments reflect Hulst's leadership and strategic vision for PlayStation's future, focusing on innovation, diversity, and global reach.

 

[Etifilio]

Since the acquisition was announced they already confirmed all future Bungie games will be multiplat….

people here getting all their hopes up for exclusivity... then everything stays the same and they'll find an excuse for it like they always do

 

[Zzero]

Which means Marathon can’t be delayed again. Another huge risk for them. If Marathon doesn’t do well I see them just sticking with Destiny 2 and rolling in the D3 stuff into. Because they can’t lose those constant revenues and pull off the throttle either. For a brand new wholesale D3 I think Marathon has to make bank.

All depends on what’s expected from Mararthon. Honestly… probably 15-30 million if in unit form… but who knows what the model will be…

If they are banking on getting 15 to 30 million sales on what is, for all intents and purposes, a new IP then all can tell them is to not order any personalized office furniture for that board room in the next year.

 

[quest4441]

The worst acquisition of all time, for 3.7 billion we could’ve got 5 better studios instead of this trash excuse of a company.

Well you never know we could have 5 more Firewalk type studios with Herman at the helm, that timeline would be more horrific than this one.

 

[Petekilla]

YIKES... Well Bungie will be in indefinite development hell as of now with his shit leadership skills.

Right because it can’t be any worse with the current leadership that Bungie currently has. Lol

 

[Danja]

Right because it can’t be any worse with the current leadership that Bungie currently has. Lol

Hermen has put PlayStation Studios into development hell, and we ain't talking about just one studio here, burnt a ton of cash over the years and also spends more time on a yacht than he does working

What's the difference between the two again?