Days Gone director criticizes Bend Studio for not protecting his ‘legacy’ in Astro Bot ad

Days Gone was released on PlayStation 4 in 2019 and proved to be a fairly solid open-world post-apocalypse shooter with some innovative elements. It was a bit of a performance nightmare at launch, but it balanced itself out quite well and was eventually ported to PC to give players on two platforms a fun doomsday experience.

Unfortunately, despite the potential for expansions and another game, Bend Studio announced some time ago that there would be no sequel. So the title will rust and age, relegated to the abyss of history. This has never pleased the game's director, who recently spoke out against Bend Studio for using the Days Gone protagonist to “promote other games.”

Past days

To celebrate the launch of Astro Bot, Bend Studio released an image of Deacon St. John, the main character from Days Gone, watching other Astro Bot characters play on a beach. In response, John Garvin, one of the writers and directors involved in Days Gone, said:

Somehow sad that Deek (Deacon St. John) was reduced to promoting other games… well done, Bend Studio! That's how you protect your legacy!

This isn't the first time Garvin has taken to social media to vent his frustration over Days Gone's cancellation. The gaming industry veteran left Bend Studio in 2019, months after Days Gone's release, and has always expressed regret over how his game was treated in the years that followed.

In his comments on Twitter he did not let up:

Haha, I see my character reduced to a cartoon shill promoting a little game and I'm tough? Sit down, my brother, the adults are talking

I enjoyed Days Gone and made the most of the game, collecting every trophy and exploring the vast world it offered. I particularly enjoyed the game's “horde mechanic,” which allowed hundreds of enemies to descend upon the player at a moment's notice, often resulting in some of the most intense combat I've ever experienced in a game.

It's a shame that Days Gone was forgotten by Bend Studio, but it's not the first franchise the team has had to abandon. It doesn't paint a good picture for Garvin to defend his title like that on social media, and he gets a lot of flak for it, but it's not impossible to understand where he's coming from.

For more Insider Gaming reports, check out the news that Stellar Blade may be available for Astro Bot.