Sony has announced the establishment of a new PlayStation studio named teamLFG, and teased the debut game from this innovative team. In a detailed post on the PlayStation Blog, Hermen Hulst, CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment's Studio Business Group, revealed that teamLFG was originally part of Bungie, the developers behind Destiny and Marathon, and is now working on an "ambitious" incubation project that has sparked excitement.
The name teamLFG stands for 'Looking For Group,' a nod to gaming community lingo, emphasizing the studio's focus on social gaming experiences. Their first project is a team-based action game, drawing inspiration from a diverse range of genres including fighting games, platformers, MOBAs, life sims, and "frog-type games." The game is set in a lighthearted, comedic world within a brand-new, mythic, science-fantasy universe.
teamLFG's mission is to create games that foster friendship, community, and a sense of belonging. "We want our players to feel excited when they log on to discover their teammates already hanging out online," the studio explained. "We want our players to recognize familiar names and to make myths and memes out of each other. We want our players to love remembering that one time where they pulled off That Play that changed the whole story of the match. As we say on the team – dat’s da good stuff."
The studio aims to develop immersive multiplayer worlds that players can learn, play, and master over countless hours. They plan to involve the community in the development process through early access playtests, emphasizing agility in responding to player feedback both before and after launch to continually evolve the game and its community.
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teamLFG's project originated during a period of significant layoffs at Bungie, following Sony's acquisition. Bungie struggled to meet financial targets with Destiny 2, leading to the layoffs of approximately 100 employees in November 2023, followed by another 220 in 2024, which represented 17% of the studio's workforce. Amid these changes, 155 employees were integrated into other parts of Sony Interactive Entertainment, and the incubation project that became teamLFG was announced.
In late 2023, a former Bungie lawyer praised Sony's role in pushing for improvements to Destiny 2, a live service looter shooter that had faced challenges. Since then, Bungie has fully revealed the extraction shooter Marathon and confirmed the roadmap for the future of Destiny 2. However, there are no plans for Destiny 3, and a spinoff project called Payback has been canceled.
