The upcoming title, “Marathon”, is the latest project from Bungie, creators of the popular “Destiny” series. Expected to drop later in the year, there are hints of potential developments happening behind closed doors. As per a recent report by Sacred Symbols+ podcast via The Game Post, Sony has reportedly scrapped its plans for any paid promotion for “Marathon” this year. It’s currently unknown if this decision is linked to the recent uproar surrounding the game or whether it signals a possible postponement of the scheduled release date on September 23rd.
Host Colin Moriarty stated, “Someone who knows about marketing strategies in a significant foreign market informed me that there are no current plans to invest in paid marketing for Marathon. I’m not certain if these plans changed due to recent events or if it was the plan all along. Regardless, this move is seen as rather unconventional for such a high-profile game.
Moriarty didn’t provide any extra details about which market he might be referring to. However, his mention of “what has recently happened” seems to allude to allegations that a developer from Marathon plagiarized assets from an artist called “ANTIREAL.” On May 15th, ANTIREAL highlighted several assets in the Marathon alpha that appeared to be based on designs created by the artist in 2017. That very same day, Bungie acknowledged the plagiarism in a series of tweets. The company admitted that “a former Bungie artist included these in a texture sheet that was eventually used in-game.” The development team is currently investigating how this occurred to prevent similar incidents from happening again, and they have stated that they are “determined to rectify the situation for the artist.
The debate over art theft has cast a negative spotlight on Marathon, leading some Bungie fans to suggest that the game’s release should be postponed even without the initial reception being favorable. Given the lukewarm response to the gameplay and concerns about changing public opinion in such a short time frame, many believe a delay is necessary to improve its image. If this report is correct, Sony might be considering pushing back the launch date to address these issues.
Over the past few years, Sony has been aggressively venturing into live-service games, but with mostly disappointing outcomes. The debacle of last year’s popular game, Concord, is still a bitter memory for PlayStation users. The only notable success in this area for Sony has been Helldivers 2. In 2022, Bungie was bought by Sony to aid in their live-service endeavors. However, many of Sony’s live-service games have struggled to take off, and Marathon appears to be stumbling towards its conclusion. Until PlayStation and Bungie officially reveal their plans for Marathon, we can only wait and observe how things develop.
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2025-05-25 16:40