Bungie responds to Marathon art theft controversy, admitting it stole assets and blaming a former developer: “We are conducting a thorough review”

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This week, Bungie, the developers behind Destiny 2 and Marathon, have been drawn into a significant art theft scandal. On Thursday, an artist known as Antireal (you can find her on Ko-fi) posted allegations on social media claiming that the studio took several designs from a collection of poster designs she created in 2017 and incorporated them into the art direction for Marathon without proper credit or permission.

To back up her assertion, Antireal provided a series of images within the discussion (see them below) which juxtapose screenshots from Marathon’s website, artwork from its press kit, and in-game snapshots taken during the recent Marathon alpha playtest with some of her own artwork. The resemblance is strikingly obvious, as many of Antireal’s design elements, typography, and even her unique logo can be found on various structures within the game. Her original designs are still available for comparison, showing they weren’t created recently.

In simpler terms, “Antireal stated in a strongly worded response that although Bungie isn’t required to hire him when creating a game that heavily borrows the design style he has perfected over the past ten years, it seems his work was valuable enough for them to take ideas from it and incorporate them into their game without compensation or acknowledgement.

Currently, Bungie has acknowledged their actions, stating they utilized assets belonging to Antireal. They also implicated a former employee who is no longer part of the company in this matter.

As an analyst, I’d put it this way: “Upon discovering a questionable incident involving the use of artist decals in Marathon without proper authorization, we launched an immediate investigation. It was found that a previous artist from Bungie had included these decals in a texture sheet which made its way into the game. Our current art team was unaware of this. We are currently reviewing how such a lapse occurred. This matter is taken gravely serious. We have reached out to [Antireal] to discuss the issue and are dedicated to rectifying the situation fairly, ensuring the rights of the artist are upheld.

In line with our policy, we never utilize an artist’s work without their explicit consent. To avoid any future complications, we are meticulously examining all in-game assets, particularly those created by the former Bungie artist, and enforcing tighter controls to properly credit each artist’s contributions.

As an ardent admirer, I want to express my deep appreciation for the ingenuity and unwavering passion that artists infuse into our games. Rest assured, we are steadfast in our pledge to uphold their interests fairly. Your vigilance in bringing this matter to our notice is greatly acknowledged.

It’s important to note that this incident isn’t Bungie’s first brush with such controversies. Last year, they acknowledged using a fan’s artwork in creating a Nerf gun. Earlier in 2023, they pledged to compensate another artist due to a cutscene featuring art strikingly similar to their original work. Interestingly, even before these incidents, in 2021, a trailer for The Witch Queen DLC was discovered to have directly copied fanart of the Hive goddess Xivu Arath.

Four instances of plagiarism occurring over the past four years in Bungie’s art department is extremely troubling, suggesting a significant problem in their approach to identifying and addressing copyright infringement.

It’s even more disturbing to note that this recent case might just be the most obvious instance of art plagiarism so far; when you compare Antireal’s designs to those in Marathon, a compelling case can be made that her style laid the groundwork for the “graphic realism” look characteristic of the extraction shooter genre. It appears that the game’s highly praised art direction, which is one of its most beloved aspects, seems to have been built almost entirely on stolen concepts.

Antireal further stated that for several years, she has been trailed not only by Joseph Cross, the Marathon art director, but also some individuals from Bungie, and yet, not a single form of contact or communication has ever been initiated with her. To say the least, this situation is far from favorable.

It’s likely you’re curious about whether Antireal is taking legal action. She’s stated that she doesn’t have the financial means or the extra effort to pursue this legally, but she’s grown tired of major companies finding it more convenient to pay designers to copy or steal her work rather than contacting her directly.

For the past decade, I’ve not had a steady income stream from this work, and it’s disheartening to see large design firms using my concepts as mood boards while I face financial hardship in trying to sustain myself.” She expressed this frustration.

Despite the widespread publicity surrounding this dispute and the substantial backing Antireal has received from the gaming community via her Ko-fi page, it seems there might be a possibility for her to proceed with something eventually. Only time will tell.

Marathon is scheduled to release on Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC, and PS5 on September 23, 2025.

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2025-05-16 23:09