Sony Live Service Woes Continue as Destiny 2 Hits New Low

Sony Interactive Entertainment’s live service endeavors have taken another hit with Destiny 2: Edge of Fate. Bungie’s latest expansion opened to one-third of the player numbers that Destiny 2’s previous expansions saw, raising concerns about the game’s long-term health.

Can Sony find a live service replacement for Destiny 2?

According to Steam Charts (via ResetEra), Edge of Fate — which launched on July 16 — peaked at 99,193 players. Previous expansions The Final Shape, Lightfall, and The Witch Queen all peaked at 314,000, 316,00, and 290,000 players, respectively.

This is a pretty big drop for a multiplayer game, especially one that is a major contributor to Sony’s current live service revenue. Destiny 2 has been struggling for a while, with Bungie admitting in 2023 that the game was underperforming.

Sony acquired Bungie specifically to advance its live service efforts, and so far, we haven’t seen any positive results. The developer, which is now considered a part of PlayStation Studios, has undergone significant layoffs.

It’s unclear what the future holds for Destiny 2. As for Bungie, the studio’s next game is a revival of Marathon that has, unfortunately, already hit snafu. Marathon’s reveal received a lukewarm reception and it didn’t help that it was caught plagiarizing artwork.

Bungie has since delayed Marathon.