Bungie's Making Headlines for All the Wrong Reasons Yet Again | Push Square
pushsquare.comWhen will it end for poor embattled developer Bungie? The iconic outfit – which Sony scooped up for billions to lead its floundering live service charge – went through an enormous round of layoffs earlier this year, with the PlayStation maker seemingly enforcing some management authority over the subsidiary. And now it sounds like there’s more drama occurring within the studio.
«Sony overpaid for Bungie»
Reputable Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier reports that Marathon director Chris Barrett was allegedly fired by the company due to allegations of inappropriate behaviour from several female employees. The article goes on to list a number of purported misdemeanours, which seemingly led to the senior developer’s supposed termination.
In a statement, Barrett apologised for his behaviour: “I feel that I have always conducted myself with integrity and been respectful and supportive of my colleagues, many of whom I consider my closest friends. I never understood my communications to be unwanted and I would have never thought they could possibly have made anyone feel uncomfortable. If anyone ever felt that way about their interaction with me, I am truly sorry.”
Following the publication of this story, there’s been much hand-wringing on social media about the overall state of Marathon right now. Insider Gaming’s equally reliable founder Tom Henderson said of the game: “Marathon is so cooked. Not just this [inappropriate behaviour story] but just everything I’ve heard.” While he didn’t elaborate, it’s certainly not the first time we’ve heard about problems with the project.
Marathon, which was announced during a State of Play in 2023, is set to be an extraction shooter in a hard sci-fi future. It’s inspired by a 1994 first-person shooter trilogy with the same name, which Bungie built and released for the Apple Macintosh.
As the Editor of Push Square, Sammy has over 15 years of experience analysing the world of PlayStation, from PS3 through PS5 and everything in between.
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