Weird things happen in Destiny 2. There have been several instances where content has entered the shooter that fans created years ago. And even though Bungie tries to handle this well and adjust, it doesn’t always work out.
This is the current case:
For the 10th anniversary of Destiny 2, Bungie created a “Nerf Gun,” which is a toy revolver. It looked just like Cayde’s iconic weapon, the “Ace of Spades,” the Pikass.
But it turned out that a fan artist named Tofu_Rabbit had already created a commissioned piece in 2015, which apparently served as the template for the commercial Nerf blaster that launched in 2024. However, this plagiarism occurred without the artist’s knowledge or consent.
The case quickly went viral, and people demanded a statement from Bungie.
How was this resolved? Bungie actually stepped in and announced that they would investigate the case. Ultimately, they decided to acknowledge the artist’s claim and “compensate” them.
The fan artist thanked Bungie for being so professional and nice. He is very grateful to everyone who stood up for his rights (via x).
Fan artist waited 1 year for promised compensation
Has this happened before? Yes, in the context of the current case, a similar case was brought up again. In 2023, artist Julian Faylon came forward, whose art apparently made it into a cutscene in Destiny 2 when it was about the Witness.
Bungie had also assured her that they would take care of the case. But in a year, nothing had happened.
Only in light of the new case did a community manager contact the artist and promise to expedite the process now.
The artist says in an interview with PCGamer that Bungie apologized for the long wait and is working to provide her the compensation.
For the artist, it is a great honor that her work appears in her favorite game at all. And even the long wait has not changed her fondness for Destiny and Bungie. Unfortunately, it is often the case in the creative industry that issues like copyright are often not taken seriously and fall by the wayside.
In 2023, Bungie had already shown poor judgment when they awarded the best fan art and rewarded it with AI.
“Creative Shortcut”
This is what it’s about: The matter is somewhat embarrassing for Bungie. Apparently, artists, probably freelancers who they hire and pay for themselves or whose work they purchase, like to take a creative shortcut and use fan art from the internet and pass it off as their own work.
However, in a game like Destiny, where everything is closely scrutinized, this gets noticed. Bungie can be criticized here for not paying enough attention to quality assurance of purchased work. In 2017, there was already serious trouble when Bungie made a major blunder with purchased art: How could a racist hate symbol end up in Destiny 2?
