Bungie Is SCREWED – Marathon Marketing Budget Collapses for Sony’s HUGE $3.6B Bet...

Bungie, once not that long ago was the crown jewel amongst Sony’s billion-dollar acquisition sprees, is now facing what many are calling the beginning of a full-blown collapse... and it’s not an overstatement.

With the Marathon plagiarism scandal, collapsing morale, and a reported complete cancellation of the game’s marketing campaign, Bungie is unraveling faster than anyone expected. And if this situation sounds familiar, that’s because it echoes what just happened with Firewalk Studios, another Sony-owned studio, whose own live-service disaster, Concord, led to the studio’s closure and a reported $400 million loss.

Sony acquired Bungie back in 2022 for a staggering $3.6 billion, touting the move as part of their long-term live-service strategy. But with the Marathon release supposedly approaching, Bungie’s highly anticipated revival of a classic IP is imploding before it even hits shelves. Sony now finds themself watching its live-service ambitions turn to dust... once again.

YIKES.

The Marathon Meltdown

Let’s me first do a quick break down on how we got here (and holy crap did this all happen fast)

• The game's been under fire since its first gameplay reveal in April.

• Players immediately raised red flags about missing core features, including the lack of proximity chat... a critical feature for any extraction shooter. Sony of course fearful of 'mean words' being said, cut back on core expected features for the sake of creating a 'safe space' in their game.

• Bungie’s Closed Alpha NDA was scrapped, following poor internal feedback.

• Then, came the killing blow: Bungie was caught plagiarizing an artist’s work, which they later admitted was true. This in itself would be enough to collapse a project, nevermind everything else that has been swirling.

This last scandal seems to have nuked any remaining confidence. A new report by Colin Moriarty in his paywalled Sacred Symbols+ podcast on Last Stand Media reveals that pretty much all paid marketing for Marathon has been canceled, with sources confirming there are no plans for promotional campaigns in key international markets. This isn't just a red flag... no- it's a full-on evacuation siren. And it's impossible to ignore. For a game of this profile to lose its marketing push just months before a planned launch is ...unprecedented, I'd say.

Morale in Free-Fall, Delay Likely

On top of all this, now we have Paul Tassi on Forbes stating that now Bungie’s internal environment as “actively hostile” with morale in “free-fall.” The studio, once held in high regard for creating Halo and Destiny, is now having to be dealing with developer disillusionment, player distrust, and mounting pressures from Sony to deliver a miracle through all the drama.

Oh... and it gets worse: Marathon reportedly needs to be one of the top five best-selling games of 2025 to be considered successful... an almost laughable goal considering the current chaos. With no marketing to speak of, no preorder plan in sight, and a deeply damaged reputation, that 'goal' at this point seems nearly impossible.

Déjà Vu: Firewalk Studios All Over Again

Sony already lived through this once, and it wasn't even that long ago with Firewalk Studios and Concord. That game, another live-service shooter meant to anchor Sony’s future, bombed so hard that the studio was shut down just weeks after launch.

Reports now estimate the loss at $400 million. Of course, history seems to be repeating itself with Bungie, except this time, the stakes are even higher, and the studio is WAYYY bigger...

The Bigger Picture: Sony’s Live-Service Bet Is Crumbling

Sony’s multi-billion-dollar live-service gamble is looking like one of the most catastrophic business decisions in gaming history. Bungie was supposed to be the ones leading that charge. Instead, they’re falling apart under the weight of mismanagement, ethical failures, and creative stagnation.

What started as a bold vision has now devolved into a reminder of what NOT to do. If Marathon misses its launch ...or fails to sell assuming it even can launch on time, Bungie could face devastating cuts, or worse, become the next Firewalk. Crazy to think that 3.6 Billion dollars can just up and vanish due to poor hiring decisions and plagiarism but... here we are.

Sony might have spent billions to “secure the future,” but with Bungie now in seeming complete freefall and Marathon already circling the drain, it’s clear to most folks watching: that future is looking bleak for anyone associated with the project.

~Smash