Bend Studio’s next game reportedly features co-op without live-service design

Bend Studio’s next project is reportedly a third-person game with co-op support that will avoid the live-service model planned for the PlayStation developer’s cancelled previous project.

MP1st reports that the Days Gone studio is targeting both a reveal and release in 2027, citing sources familiar with development. Sony and Bend Studio have not announced the game, so its features and release plans remain subject to change.

Bend’s unannounced project includes cooperative gameplay but is not being developed as a live-service or games-as-a-service title. Exactly how co-op works, including whether it is optional or integrated throughout the game, has not been revealed.

That distinction is notable because Bend previously spent years developing an unannounced live-service project before Sony cancelled it in early 2025. The project was reportedly known internally as Mirror Pond and was separate from the game currently being developed.

Bend subsequently underwent layoffs as it shifted toward another project. The studio said at the time that it was transitioning to its next game, while later PlayStation job listings described the new production as a “high-profile AAA console title.”

MP1st also reports that Bend’s next project will not be Days Gone 2. The studio’s 2019 open-world game remains its most recent original release, although Days Gone Remastered brought an upgraded version to PlayStation 5 in 2025.

What Bend is working on instead remains unclear. Sources did not confirm whether the project is another new IP or something connected to one of the studio’s older properties, which include Syphon Filter, Resistance: Retribution and Uncharted: Golden Abyss.

The third-person perspective would at least remain familiar territory for Bend. The studio has spent much of its history building third-person action games, while Days Gone expanded that experience into a large open world built around motorcycle traversal and large Freaker hordes.

The project is said to be “much further along in development” than players might expect. MP1st reports that Bend currently intends to reveal the game sometime in 2027 and is also aiming to release it within the same year.

That remains a target rather than a confirmed launch window. Sony has not announced platforms, a title or any formal release plans, and features such as co-op could still change while development continues.

After the cancellation of its previous live-service game and subsequent layoffs, a third-person co-op project without ongoing service requirements would represent a different direction for the studio. Players will likely have to wait until 2027 to see exactly what Bend has been building.