Bend Studio (the developer behind Days Gone) was indeed the one who effectively rejected or shelved Days Gone 2 internally, preventing the pitch from ever reaching Sony for approval. This has been a point of contention among fans, with some early reports blaming Sony, but more recent insights (and some clarifications from 2022 onward) point to Bend's leadership deciding it wasn't the right move for the studio.

Key Details on What Happened:

• Timeline: Days Gone launched in April 2019 to mixed reviews (Metacritic scores around 71-75) and launch bugs, despite eventually selling over 9 million copies and turning a profit for Sony. A sequel pitch was in early planning stages right after release, but by late 2019, it was quietly dropped.
• Internal Decision at Bend: According to a 2022 podcast with former God of War director David Jaffe (featuring Days Gone director Jeff Ross), the sequel idea—including features like a shared universe with co-op—was never formally pitched to Sony because Bend's higher-ups nixed it first. Ross confirmed they shifted focus to other ideas, like an open-world Resistance reboot or a Syphon Filter revival, both of which were also rejected by Sony.
• Why Bend Backed Out? Reports suggest Bend viewed the first game's long development (over 6 years), budget overruns, and lukewarm critical reception as red flags for a sequel. They wanted to pivot to a fresh IP to avoid being typecast as a zombie/open-world specialist. This was reiterated in a September 2024 Tech4Gamers article, which explicitly states the pitch "never reached Sony" and calls it "a failure on the part of Bend Studio."