Game developer Bungie has encountered an issue with its upcoming extraction shooter, Marathon. The game, scheduled for release in September, and its creator have faced criticism for using art created by visual and musical artist Antireal without giving her proper credit.
On Thursday, Antireal pointed out that the game’s environments in the recent alpha playtest feature assets that were taken from her poster designs created in 2017. To support her claim, she compared several in-game graphics to her own work and showed a graphic sheet from the game’s press kit alongside more of her 2017 designs. Additionally, she mentioned that several Bungie employees, including the game’s art director Joseph Cross, have been following her on social media for years without ever reaching out to her.
The Marathon alpha released recently and its environments are covered with assets lifted from poster designs I made in 2017. @Bungie @josephacross pic.twitter.com/0Csbo48Jgb
— N² (@4nt1r34l) May 15, 2025
Antireal expressed her feelings, stating, “Bungie is not obligated to hire me when making a game that heavily draws from the same design language I have developed over the last decade. However, it’s clear that my work was good enough for them to use as inspiration and incorporate into their game without paying me or giving me credit.”
Later on Thursday, after conducting an “immediate investigation,” Bungie acknowledged that a former artist had included Antireal’s work in a texture sheet used in the game. The company stated that this issue was unknown to their current art team and that they are reviewing how this oversight occurred. Bungie also reached out to Antireal to discuss the issue and is committed to making it right with her.
During a Friday livestream, Cross explained that the former employee had placed Antireal’s art in a decal sheet without permission or acknowledgment back in 2020. He then apologized to Antireal, saying there was “no excuse for this oversight” and that they are doing everything they can to make it right with her. He praised her work, saying it’s “fantastic,” and acknowledged that they share a mutual appreciation for a specific genre of graphic design.
#Marathon art director Joseph Cross admits designs were stolen from artist antireal
• Claims a former Bungie employee was responsible
• Fourth time in recent years Bungie has been accused of plagiarism pic.twitter.com/VC81r5iAw7
— Culture Crave (@CultureCrave) May 16, 2025
As Polygon notes, Bungie has previously faced criticism for using fan-made artwork without proper credit or permission in marketing and cutscenes for Destiny 2, as well as a Nerf gun. The studio later obtained permission from the respective artists and compensated at least one of them. For Marathon, Cross stated that the company is conducting a more thorough review of in-game assets, particularly those from the unnamed former artist. Any art found to be “questionably or inappropriately sourced” will be removed from the alpha build and recreated in-house.
At the time of writing, Marathon is still expected to release on September 23 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
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