Bungie’s upcoming game Marathon is struggling following plagiarism allegations that were later confirmed by the developer itself. Following the art theft reveal and a lackluster stream intended to address the plagiarism and concerns from the game’s Alpha test, many gamers began calling for a release delay. Today, Forbes reported that Bungie employees are struggling with morale following the news, leading to an increased likelihood that the game will be delayed. As one employee at Bungie put it, “the vibes have never been worse,” but official plans for a delay have yet emerged.
Marathon is a first-person extraction shooter planned to release on September 23rd from Bungie. One of the game’s big selling points has been its bright, colorful art style, something that has kept many players interested in the game. However, the allegations that some assets were created from stolen art, alongside player feedback from the Closed Alpha, have put the game’s future into question.
Bungie addressed the art theft allegations publicly in a livestream originally intended to show off more gameplay. Instead, Marathon Game Director Joe Ziegler pivoted to discussing the art theft controversy and Alpha Feedback. You can check out his official statement regarding the art theft and more below:
As shared in the video above, Bungie has declared it intends to fully review in-game assets to ensure no further issues with art theft, a process that could take a while. Indeed, the Marathon livestream included no footage from the game as Bungie looks into just how large the scope of the plagiarism goes.
Future of Marathon Looks Uncertain as Employees Worry What’s Next
As the studio behind the wildly popular Halo and Destiny, Bungie has a solid reputation for creating solid shooters. That said, it’s been a few years since the studio released Destiny 2, and the upcoming Marathon has big shoes to fill. Big shoes and big financial expectations, particularly as its extraction shooter plans to launch into a genre flooded with free-to-play titles, carrying a hefty pricetag along with it. Now that the game is facing some serious legal challenges as it investigates the scope and seriousness of art theft within Marathon, that pressure has intensified. And employees are clearly feeling that pressure, concerned about what happens if Marathon‘s early bad PR causes the studio’s latest game to falter.
Prior to the art theft scandal, Marathon was already pivoting with marketing. Reactions to April’s Closed Alpha test and initial gameplay footage weren’t as positive as the developer hoped, and they pushed back plans to release a new trailer along with pre-orders. Given that Marathon is slated for a September release date as of now, pushing back a trailer isn’t ideal at this stage of the game. That said, showing off a trailer that uses stolen art isn’t ideal either, so it’s likely a better move on Bungie’s part to hold off while it conducts this audit.
RELATED: Can Marathon Overcome Its Premium Price Tag?
With the scope of the art theft issue currently unknown, along with general bad player feelings about the game, a September 23rd release for Marathon could prove tricky. No official announcements have been made just yet, but a delay is looking more likely at this point. Between the time it will take to investigate the plagiarism in the game and redo the associated assets and the overall public sentiments about the game, the time between now and September may not be enough to get Marathon ready for action.
The post Marathon Delay More Likely as Bungie Navigates Plagiarism and Morale Issues appeared first on ComicBook.com.
