Bungie and Sony Interactive Entertainment appear to have reached an agreement over a plagiarism scandal surrounding the art assets in their upcoming game, Marathon. The dispute centered around Fern Hook, an artist known as "Antireal" online, who claimed that her work had been used without credit in the game.
In June 2025, Bungie delayed Marathon indefinitely due to the allegations, and since then, the company has maintained that it was conducting an investigation into the matter. However, on December 2, 2025, Hook announced on X that she had reached a resolution with Bungie and Sony, stating that her issues had been "resolved to my satisfaction."
The issue at hand involved Marathon's distinctive art style, which is significantly attributed to Hook's work. It was discovered that certain assets and textures in the game's alpha were copied from her designs without permission or proper credit.
Bungie had hoped to discuss the matter with Hook prior to resolving the dispute, but details of the agreement remain unclear. Nonetheless, it appears that any outstanding issues have been addressed, providing a sense of closure for both parties involved.
The delay and subsequent investigation into Marathon's development have been a significant concern for Sony, which has been scrutinizing Bungie's performance. By settling this issue, Bungie can now focus on launching the game by March 2026, marking its first major new title since Destiny 2 in 2017. This resolution is seen as a positive step forward for Marathon, ensuring a smoother launch and potentially setting the stage for success in the gaming market.
In June 2025, Bungie delayed Marathon indefinitely due to the allegations, and since then, the company has maintained that it was conducting an investigation into the matter. However, on December 2, 2025, Hook announced on X that she had reached a resolution with Bungie and Sony, stating that her issues had been "resolved to my satisfaction."
The issue at hand involved Marathon's distinctive art style, which is significantly attributed to Hook's work. It was discovered that certain assets and textures in the game's alpha were copied from her designs without permission or proper credit.
Bungie had hoped to discuss the matter with Hook prior to resolving the dispute, but details of the agreement remain unclear. Nonetheless, it appears that any outstanding issues have been addressed, providing a sense of closure for both parties involved.
The delay and subsequent investigation into Marathon's development have been a significant concern for Sony, which has been scrutinizing Bungie's performance. By settling this issue, Bungie can now focus on launching the game by March 2026, marking its first major new title since Destiny 2 in 2017. This resolution is seen as a positive step forward for Marathon, ensuring a smoother launch and potentially setting the stage for success in the gaming market.
It's always frustrating when someone gets taken advantage of like Antireal did. I mean, art is super subjective, but not getting credit for your work is just basic human decency, right?
, I'm glad they could work things out. It's kinda weird how art style can get all mixed up like that. And poor Sony, had to deal with the whole delay drama 
... hope Marathon is gonna live up to expectations now!
art assets are super important to games so its awesome they reached an agreement 
so I'm kinda relieved that this whole plagiarism thing got sorted out, but it's wild that it even came to that point in the first place... I mean, I get that artistic inspiration can be murky, but not giving credit? that's just basic 
. Glad that Bungie and Sony could come to a resolution tho, now they can focus on getting Marathon out the door by March 2026 
. Like, can't we expect more from our game developers? They're supposed to be artists and creators, not just cogwheels in a giant machine 
. I guess I'll just have to wait and see if Marathon turns out to be any good...
but I guess that's not the point, right? the point is they dodged a major bullet and can finally focus on launching the game. March 2026 can't come soon enough for these guys 
. I mean, I get it, Antireal did come forward with some legit claims 
. I guess it's all water under the bridge now 
. For me, the fact that they're finally moving forward with their game is what matters most 
they gotta be relieved to finally put marathons development back on track after that huge delay i dont know what fern hooked up to, but 200k or whatever she claimed was a lot of money lol guess you could say bungie learned their lesson on not copying art assets 
anyway now they can focus on making marathon an actual good game and not just a mess 
. Bungie should've been more transparent about what happened... 
and i feel bad for fern hook too, she was right to speak up about it. i hope maroon doesn't get lost in the hype again though 
... so it looks like Fern Hook (aka Antireal) has finally gotten her art credits 
after that massive plagiarism scandal. i'm low-key impressed that they were able to come to an agreement without too much drama 
. it's always a win when creators can get the recognition they deserve, and now bungie can focus on launching marathon by march 2026 
I was so worried about Bungie's game Marathon after that whole plagiarism scandal thingy... 
antireal's design skills are fire 
and i'm low-key salty that sony didn't get called out for not stepping up 
march 2026 is gonna be a wild ride 
. It's gonna be sick to play Marathon in March 2026! 
️. I'm glad Antireal (Fern Hook) got some closure and her work is being credited where it's due 
. This deal doesn't exactly clear Bungie of all wrongdoing, but at least it shows they're willing to listen and make amends 
. Now let's see if Marathon lives up to the hype! 
But it looks like everything is back on track and we're gonna get to play this epic game soon 
i feel bad for Antireal she must've been so frustrated when her art got copied without credit 
march 2026 can't come soon enough 
I'm so happy to see that Bungie & Sony have resolved this whole thing with Antireal! It's just amazing how fast they were able to come to an agreement, especially since everything was kinda dragging out for months 
. But now it's clear that Bungie and Sony have worked out their issues with Fern Hook, and Marathon can get back on track 
. That art style is definitely a big part of what makes the game unique, so it's awesome that Hook's work is getting the credit it deserves