After Canceling Mirror Pond: How Days Gone Developer Bend Studio Targets Both a Reveal and Release in 2027 for Its Co-Op Game
The recent history of Bend Studio within PlayStation Studios has been anything but smooth. Since the original launch of Days Gone in 2019 and Sony Interactive Entertainment's decision to pass on a direct sequel pitch, the Oregon-based developer has weathered severe turbulence: the early 2025 cancellation of its open-world military live-service project internally codenamed Mirror Pond, the interim launch of Days Gone Remastered on PS5 and PC on April 25, 2025, and a painful June 2025 restructuring that laid off roughly 30% of its workforce (around 40 developers). Now, according to industry insiders familiar with the studio's roadmap and official corporate job listings, Bend Studio is preparing its comeback with a new third-person co-op game targeting both an official reveal and release in 2027.
A Third-Person Co-Op Action Game With No Live-Service Hooks and No Days Gone 2
Details emerging around the unannounced project immediately settle two major questions for PlayStation fans. First, the game is not Days Gone 2: Deacon St. John and the Freaker hordes of the Pacific Northwest remain on ice, with Sony keeping the franchise dormant despite the solid reception of last year's PS5 remaster.
Second, and perhaps most importantly following the collapse of Mirror Pond, this new title is not a live-service (GaaS) game. Career listings published by Sony Interactive Entertainment for Bend Studio, including searches for a Creative Director with extensive multiplayer and co-op design experience alongside community management roles timed for early 2027, point toward a dedicated third-person co-op experience stripped of ongoing seasonal monetization.
Why Development Is Advanced Enough for a Same-Year Reveal and Launch in 2027
When a AAA studio targets both a world premiere announcement and a commercial launch within the same calendar year in 2027, barely two years after having a flagship project canceled, might sound unusually fast. However, sources familiar with the project indicate that production is significantly further along than outside observers assumed.
Rather than starting from scratch after Sony pulled the plug on Mirror Pond in early 2025, Bend Studio was able to salvage, repurpose, and carryover a substantial portion of the technical foundation built over several years. Core co-op networking architecture, third-person shooting mechanics, and existing production assets were redirected into this tighter scope, positioning the title as a notable contender on the 2027 video game release calendar.
By dropping the costly infrastructure required to sustain an endless live-service open world in favor of a focused co-op structure, Bend Studio avoids another grueling five-to-six-year development cycle. That pragmatic pivot also gives Sony a fresh first-party PS5 showcase alongside other major PlayStation Studios efforts, such as Insomniac Games' multi-character Marvel's X-Men project.
My Perspective
Truth be told, like plenty of players who loved tearing across the broken highways of Oregon, it still stings a little knowing Sony refuses to greenlight Days Gone 2. But looking at the brutal storm Bend Studio went through in 2025 between the cancellation of Mirror Pond and losing nearly a third of its staff, hearing that their next project has officially escaped the live-service trap is a massive relief. Salvaging years of third-person gunplay and co-op engineering to build a self-contained cooperative action game, without invasive cosmetic shops or endless battle passes, is the smartest pivot they could possibly make. And a short marketing window where we see the game revealed in 2027 and actually get to play it that same year? Count me in.
Based on the outskirts of New York City, Chaya 'Chayane' spent five years studying software engineering in Montreal before returning to her home state. A Full-Stack developer and Deep Learning AI architecture researcher, she explores neural networks and algorithmic optimization while engineering data pipelines for Retrocharting and Gamescharting alongside Grimtag. A gamer for over 20 years and an avid collector of Nintendo history and The Legend of Zelda, she explored World of Warcraft's Azeroth before bringing her deep technical background to video game analysis.
