Bungie's Marathon credits artist it plagiarized

Bungie's PvP extraction shooter Marathon is finally here after a troubled pre-release period, which included a delay after negative feedback during an alpha test. More damaging for Marathon was a plagiarism scandal that swept up Bungie last spring. That scandal has now been resolved, and the artist whose work Bungie stole has been properly credited in the game.

In May 2025, artist Fern "4nt1r34l" (Antireal) Hook accused Bungie of using her artwork as assets in Marathon without permission. After an investigation, Bungie admitted fault and confirmed "a former Bungie artist included these in a texture sheet that was ultimately used in-game." Bungie said it "reached out to 4nt1r34l to discuss this issue and are committed to do right by the artist." Later that year, Hook shared on X that "The Marathon art issue has been resolved with Bungie and Sony Interactive Entertainment to my satisfaction." What the terms of that resolution were, and if Hook's public announcement of a resolution was a part of them, were not clear at the time.

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