Bungie "Absolutely Cannot Afford" For Marathon to Fail

Over the past several days, development studio Bungie and, by extension, its upcoming first-person shooter Marathon, have become the focus of perhaps their biggest controversy yet, involving the studio stealing art from Digital Artist Antireal for use in Marathon – a theft Bungie later admitted to – marking the fourth time Bungie has knowingly or unknowingly used artists' work without permission.

Amid the art-theft-related backlash, and with Marathon already facing criticism within the gaming community for its $40 price, aim-assist that essentially functions like an aimbot, Bungie's reasons for not including proximity chat, and simply for being a live-service game – something many gamers have grown tired of at this point – company morale is now reportedly at an all-time low, sparking concern for the future of both the game and Bungie as a whole.

As reported by Forbes, which claims to have spoken with several current and former Bungie employees, Bungie "absolutely cannot afford" for Marathon to flop, and as it stands, the studio has no idea how to change the gaming community's generally negative opinion of the game in time for its planned September release.

At the same time, morale within the studio is in "free-fall" across all departments, with insiders saying "the vibes have never been worse." It is said that many developers worry about Bungie's future – and their own jobs – with their concern fueled by a combination of factors including the art theft scandal and the community's reaction to gameplay footage and Marathon's Alpha version.

Speaking of the art theft scandal, according to Forbes' sources, the public explanation – that it was the fault of one developer back in 2020, who has supposedly since left the team – is the same one being given internally at Bungie. Reportedly, the studio's legal department is now conducting an audit of the in-game assets to ensure no stolen content remains when the game launches, though there is currently no clear timeline for how long this audit might take.

Additionally, the sources told the outlet that Bungie's executives have often ignored the advice of their own developers about what would and wouldn't work in Marathon, including the suggestion that the game needed to feature PvE elements.

So, what's your take on Marathon's situation? Can Bungie turn the community's opinion around by September? Will the game even last long enough to launch? Share your thoughts in the comments!