Earlier this week, Scottish artist Fern Hook posted on social media that her work had appeared in the Marathon alpha without her knowledge or permission. “Its environments are covered with assets lifted from poster designs I made in 2017,” Hook wrote on X.
Bungie says that it was made aware of the issue and determined the art team did not know the artwork was stolen and that a former employee was responsible for adding the assets. The studio also said it reached out to Fern to discuss the matter and that it is, “committed to doing right by the artist.”
This is not the first time an artist’s work has been used for a Bungie product without their permission. In 2024, Bungie agreed to compensate the artist Tofu Rabbit after she discovered that the design for a Destiny 2-themed Nerf Gun was ripped directly from her fanart. Bungie has also been accused of using other creators’ Destiny 2 fanart for references and cutscenes without permission.
Bungie says it’s reviewing its in-game assets especially those done by former employees to ensure this won’t happen again (or again, or again).
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
