Halo and Destiny composer Michael Salvatori was laid off by Bungie, along with several other staff members. Bungie didn't even spare long-time employees, letting go of people who had dedicated years to the company.
Destiny 2 community found that both Salvatori and composer Michael Sechrist had changed their information on their respective websites. Salvatori wrote "GONE FISHIN' :)," and Sechrist said "GONE FISHIN' with SALVATORI…” Players who came across those pages, and claims circulating on Twitter, assumed that both composers were laid off by Bungie. However, Paul Tassi shared an email he received from Salvatori, making it clear that Bungie did let go of these composers.
This news came as a shock to Destiny 2 players since Salvatori has been behind every single Destiny original soundtrack. Sechrist was the mind behind Deep Stone lullaby too, the track that plays in Beyond Light's Deep Stone Crypt raid. Players get tossed into Earth's orbit, and while walking across the satellite, Deep Stone Lullaby gently cuts the silence of space with its delicate sounds. The Witch Queen is a beloved expansion, and its soundtrack gave Savathun's Throne World a feeling of desolation it so needed. Even when you don't know how the newest expansion will turn out, you can trust the composers to deliver tracks that have you crank up the volume — I still jam to The Taken King soundtrack, by the way.
Bungie has other composers, but letting go of these two who have created magical moments in Destiny makes me wonder how The Final Shape soundtrack will shape up. If the developer plans on making more expansions after this one — since we only know of episodes so far — it will be strange not seeing Salvatori's name on future soundtracks.
Shortly after news broke out about layoffs, Bloomberg reported that The Final Shape would launch in June 2024, four months after its original release date.
