Two weeks ago, longtime Bungie Community Manager David “Deej” Dague announced his departure from the developer. After serving in a number of roles at the company, Dague will be moving on to new adventures.
For any that have been part of the Halo or Destiny communities, Deej’s importance to Bungie cannot be overstated. Many have already shared their favorite stories from his tenure at Bungie, but one fan took things a step further.
Connor YOA on YouTube put together an impressive 21-minute video to serve as a thank you to Deej for all he has done while working at Bungie. It includes his time hosting reveal events for upcoming Destiny and Destiny 2 content, interviews with media, and smaller moments that made their way online.
Although the Community Management team at Bungie has grown over the years, many started out first with Deej. He was out there promoting Destiny well before the game released and, as mentioned, he hosted numerous events to build excitement for the game. Deej also put his own personality into the weekly Bungie blog post, or the TWAB (This Week at Bungie) as it is more commonly known. He liked to take digs at some of the other classes in Destiny, while giving love to his fellow Warlocks.
It’s also important to recognize the thankless job of a community manager, who sometimes has to deliver important pieces of information to the community and bear the brunt of the criticism. For as much as Deej was the face of news about Destiny, he was also one of the figures that received the most feedback, despite not being a content developer. But even so, he always put an emphasis on being kind and highlighted the bright spots within the Destiny community as much as possible. Just as Bungie uses Destiny as a platform to do good, Deej used his platforms to spread empathy and kindness.
Ultimately, Deej created a blueprint that many would argue is being used by CMs across the gaming industry. Bungie certainly wasn’t the first to host livestreams, or blog posts, or engage with its community on forums, but Deej and his colleagues did show how it could be used to build a strong foundation. There is a reason that so many games are chasing the title of “The Next Destiny” and it’s not just about gameplay. Few community managers are as well known as Deej, and his impact should persist within gaming for a long time.
At present, Deej has not revealed what his next “destination” will entail, but as fans of his work at Bungie, we’re sure that he will excel there too. Game ZXC wishes David Dague all the best in future endeavors.