According to GameSpot, Sony has taken a massive $204 million financial hit due to Destiny 2 underperforming expectations. The gaming giant confirmed during its Q2 FY2025 earnings that player engagement and revenue for Bungie’s shooter have been weaker than anticipated since the $3.6 billion acquisition in 2022. CFO Lin Tao explained they’ve “downwardly revised the business projection” and recorded the ¥31.5 billion impairment loss against Bungie assets, plus an additional ¥18.3 billion expense for development cost corrections. The financial setback comes as Destiny 2 faces some of its lowest engagement levels in years, with Steam data showing player counts dropping below 2018’s Curse of Osiris lows. Bungie is now banking on their next major expansion, Renegades, launching December 2, 2025, to turn things around.
The Downward Spiral
Here’s the thing about live service games – they live and die by player engagement. And right now, Destiny 2 is bleeding players at an alarming rate. Steam charts show the game hitting numbers we haven’t seen since the disastrous Curse of Osiris era, which is basically rock bottom in Destiny terms. Players have been vocal about missing updates, controversial gameplay changes, and what feels like a general lack of direction.
But the real question is: can Bungie actually turn this around? They’re promising better communication and focusing on the “immediate and long-term future” of Destiny 2, but we’ve heard similar promises before. The live service model is brutal – once players leave, they’re incredibly hard to win back. And with so many competitors in the space, from established giants to new releases, Destiny 2’s window for recovery might be closing faster than Sony anticipated.
What This Means for Sony and Bungie
So here’s the silver lining, according to Sony’s CFO – this $204 million write-down only affects Bungie’s intangible assets, not the goodwill from the acquisition. That means Sony still believes in Bungie’s overall value and their ability to deliver beyond just Destiny 2. But let’s be real – that’s corporate speak for “we’re worried but trying to sound confident.”
The pressure is now absolutely massive for both Destiny 2’s Renegades expansion and Bungie’s upcoming shooter Marathon. Sony didn’t spend $3.6 billion just to write off hundreds of millions in losses. If Renegades doesn’t deliver a significant player resurgence in December, and if Marathon stumbles out of the gate, we could be looking at much bigger problems for Bungie within the Sony ecosystem.
Basically, this financial hit is Sony’s way of publicly adjusting expectations while giving Bungie one more chance to prove their worth. But in the cutthroat world of gaming, second chances don’t come cheap – and $204 million is one expensive reality check.
