From Tuncer Deniz ... (Destiny)

by Kermit , Raleigh, NC, Monday, June 29, 2026, 17:09 (1 hours, 44 minutes ago) @ cheapLEY

Someone just posted this on reddit, from some showcase or ViDoc a few years ago, with Luke Smith talking to Jason Jones:

Luke Smith: What is Bungie's epitaph? What is the tombstone distillation of what Bungie is?

Jason: I was on the 271 coming back across the bridge home one night on the bus. These two guys in front of me were talking about college, they were older but had gone to college together. At some point they started talking about Halo, I think it was Halo 2 for them and they weren't really talking about how much Halo meant to them and they weren't really talking about how much they meant to each other but that's what they were doing. They were sharing these stories of where they were and what they were doing and how they were feeling. That moment, is still keeping me going, I mean that might fuel me for the rest of my life. It's not the only time that's happened, but you get a few of those and that's all I want -- it's just people sharing memories in an experience that wouldn't have existed without you bleeding buckets of blood into whatever code or design. Two people having an experience that they wouldn't have had if you hadn't created what you did. That's what matters to me.

I won’t pretend that’s a unique perspective to Jason or Bungie—I’m sure lots of creators feel similarly. But Bungie has consistently been the studio to provide those sorts of experiences. Hell, this place existing is evidence enough of that.

That’s where the hope that they can somehow pull through comes from.

As to the question, why hope? I think you did a good job of answering that in this thread. Bungie games have retained something special through all that churn. Talent has been leaving for a long time now. That did not seem to keep Bungie from "cooking" when they had to stick the landing. Some of those big names went on to create other games, and these were for most part worthy experiments, but they didn't catch fire. To me they didn't feel like Bungie games. (I don't say that to disrespect anyone. I truly admire and continue to be in awe of their talent.) I realize that this is different. Bungie has been severely injured. It is likely that Sony has cut to the quick. It hurts.

If you go back through all the Bungie.org forums, I stated several times that I was mainly a Bungie gamer--that I didn't play a lot other games. Then, before Destiny came out, I bought a Playstation. That broadened my horizons. So it's not like I don't pay attention to other things. (I saw a video the other day about a forthcoming game that blew me away. I might post about it in a separate thread.) But no other studio has gotten as much of my money and no other studio has given me so many friends and memories in return such that I still felt like I got a bargain. They've disappointed me, sure, but don't begrudge me having a soft spot for them. They were once "the one." Going forward, the proof of the pudding will be in the eating. Their games may not be for me personally. It's no sin to hope for good things or for their success, simply out of gratitude.