Bungie has parted ways with legendary composer, Michael Salvatori

On October 30, 2023, a date which will live in infamy, the employees of Bungie were suddenly and deliberately laid off by, as of now, unknown forces. The news came as a shock to everyone as Bungie made no official statement, but many employees took to Twitter to relay the news.

It appears that no one was safe, from community managers to composers. After an unverified source initially reported it, the man himself, legendary composer, Michael Salvatori confirmed via an update to his website, that he had also been laid off.

Halo and Destiny composer, Michael Salvatori, has parted ways with Bungie

It was a long and tragic day for Bungie's employees. Layoffs in the gaming industry have been rampant this year, with developers, publishers, and media companies laying off thousands of staff. The news of Salvatori's departure came from Carson Reed on Twitter, with the added note stating the news came from an internal source.

The report was then confirmed when Salvatori's site was updated with the home page, which had originally listed many of his accomplishments and current work for Destiny 2, now simply said "GONE FISHIN' :)"

Related: Why did Bungie delay Destiny 2 The Final Shape and Marathon?

Salvatori joined Bungie and worked on 1998's Myth: The Fallen Lords. He has been with them every step of the way since, composing some of gaming's most recognizable tracks. Even if players haven't stuck with Bungie before or since Halo, it's a near guarantee that they recognize Halo 3's iconic menu music.

The news only got worse as shortly thereafter, another Bungie composer, Michael Sechrist updated his own site to say, "GONE FISHIN' with SALVATORI..." Sechrist had joined Bungie during the development of Halo 3: ODST and transferred into the music department with Destiny: The Taken King.

There's no way to know just how far along Salvatori and Sechrist were with their compositions for Destiny 2: The Final Shape. As of yesterday, Salvatori's site stated that they were still working on it. Here's hoping they hadn't finished it just to be laid off by Bungie. Either way, both men, along with every other former Bungie employee, are extremely talented and should be scooped up by any team looking to strengthen themselves.

For more things Bungie, check out When does Destiny 2 maintenance end? on Pro Game Guides.