Almost seven months after the initial claim was made, artist Antireal has taken to Twitter to announce that they have reached an agreement with Marathon developer Bungie and its parent company, Sony, in regards to a serious plagiarism issue. After finding huge success with the Destiny franchise, Bungie is now attempting to reboot its Marathon shooter from 1994, but the studio suffered a huge setback earlier this year when an artist came forward with accusations that the title was using assets from them without prior permission.
Since its reveal in 2023, Marathon has experienced numerous controversies, with its biggest undoubtedly being the discovery that Bungie had used assets from an artist without their permission. The claim was first made by Antireal back in May of this year, when they took to Twitter and noted how the alpha build of Bungie’s new shooter was using assets that were directly lifted from posters the artist had designed in 2017. Antireal provided numerous examples of the alleged plagiarism, which Bungie then responded to less than 24 hours later.
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Shortly after the accusation was made, Bungie responded to Marathon‘s plagiarism concerns, stating that it was investigating the issue. The statement explains how a former Bungie artist included Antireal’s designs in a texture sheet that was then used in-game. The studio says it was reviewing how the oversight occurred and that it takes matters such as these very seriously, also noting that it had reached out to the original artist in order to discuss the issue further and “do right” by them. Bungie said it values the creativity and dedication of all artists and thanked the community for bringing the issue to its attention.
Marathon’s Plagiarism Incident Has Been Resolved Privately
Following Bungie’s statement on the matter, very little was said over the last few months. However, that has now changed, as artist Antireal has once again taken to Twitter to confirm that the involved parties have reached a resolution. “The Marathon art issue has been resolved with Bungie and Sony Interactive Entertainment to my satisfaction,” they said in a new post on December 2. No further details on the agreement were shared, but it seems as though the matter was resolved privately between all of those involved. As for whether the artist received compensation, in-game credit for their work, or both, remains unknown. Neither Bungie nor Sony has issued a statement on the resolution at the time of writing this article.
Although the issue was between Antireal and Bungie, the Marathon and Destiny studio was acquired by Sony in 2022, making the matter one for Sony Interactive Entertainment, too. Then, earlier this year, Sony’s Chief Financial Officer Lin Tao said the company intends to take more control over Bungie as it plans to fully integrate the studio with PlayStation Studios. Despite this statement, Marathon will still be a multiplatform release, set to arrive on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC at a currently unconfirmed date.
Plagiarism issues aside, Marathon has also suffered numerous other setbacks since its reveal two years ago. Bungie’s new first-person shooter was initially set to release on September 23, but Marathon received an indefinite delay just three months before it was set to go live. The delay came after largely negative player feedback during a closed alpha test earlier in the year, which prompted the studio to make a wide array of improvements. Although the game hasn’t been cancelled, it does appear to be undergoing some major changes, which is why the studio hasn’t committed to a new release date as of writing. Bungie says it intends to make AI encounters more challenging and engaging, as well as make runs more rewarding with new types of loot and dynamic events. Combat is also being reworked, as well as an increase to the game’s narrative and environmental storytelling.
