Marathon may not be released? Bungie cancels adverts amid plagiarism allegations

Bungie's online shooter Marathon is at the centre of a scandal after the community noticed the use of illegally borrowed textures in the current version of the game. This caused a wave of criticism in social media and gaming media. It seems that all the recent scandals may affect whether the game will be released at all.

Here's What We Know

According to the Sacred Symbols podcast, the studio has cancelled all paid advertising for the game in one of the key foreign markets. Sources familiar with the company's marketing strategy consider this an extremely atypical step for such a large-scale project. The reasons for the cancellation have not been officially announced, but the situation strangely coincides with the recent allegations

Currently, Marathon is scheduled to release on 23 September, but the cancellation of advertising and the negative media coverage may indicate a delay or even complete cancellation of the game. This is the fourth time in recent years that Bungie has been at the centre of a plagiarism scandal.

At the moment, there are no official comments from Bungie. Given the negative reaction of the community and the lack of transparent communication, the chances of a timely and successful launch of Marathon look increasingly dim.

Source: Insider Gaming