2K Games has removed Michael Condrey, founder and president of developer 31st Union, from his position within the studio. The news comes from Kotaku, which also says the main reason is the lack of player interest in their debut title, Project ETHOS, following its unveiling in October 2024.
However, that doesn't mean 2K is shutting down the studio or the game. A spokesperson told Kotaku:
We are grateful to Michael Condrey for the dedication, passion, and work ethic it took to build an incredible team and shape the vision of 31st Union. Michael will be transitioning his role in the short term to focus on advising on the future of Project ETHOS. We remain very committed to the forward path for Project ETHOS and the people and culture of the 31st Union studio.
Michael Condrey was the Game Director (alongside Bret Robbins, who recently made Immortals of Aveum) in Visceral's acclaimed Dead Space. Later, he co-founded Sledgehammer Games with fellow Dead Space creator Glen Schofield, where he worked on multiple Call of Duty games. For example, he directed 2017's Call of Duty WWII. Later, he joined 2K to found 31st Union in San Francisco, California.
As for Project ETHOS, the game was described as a free-to-play third-person hero shooter mixed with roguelike elements. These come in the form of Evolutions, powerful semi-randomized upgrades that are unique to each Hero. Evolutions can transform a sniper into a melee skirmisher or a support role into a powerful lone wolf. The roguelike elements mean that players take on the competition with new skills, stakes, and challenges every time they play, according to 31st Union.
The game will also include an extraction mode called Trials, which was described as an ongoing, persistent battle to collect cores, extract and unlock powerful Augments. There's also a built-in risk versus reward mechanic where players can either play it safe with the cores or risk everything to get to the top spot.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
Follow Wccftech on Google to get more of our news coverage in your feeds.
