Summary
A federal judge has ruled that a copyright infringement case overDestiny 2must proceed, despite Bungie’s motion to have it dismissed. Copyright lawsuits are often complicated, as the lines between inspiration, parallel thinking, and actual infringement are not always clear, but the Bungie case is particularly tricky. In addition to the usual complexities, the contentious Content Vault portion ofDestiny 2makes it difficult to provide evidence.
The case began in October 2024 when sci-fi author Matthew Kelsey Martineausued Bungie for copyright infringement, arguing that the game’s Red War storyline took many key elements from a story he had written in a WordPress blog. In response, Bungie filed to dismiss the case, providing YouTube clips of the game and screenshots from fan-made sites in an attempt to show how different the works were. However, the court has now stated that it can’t consider this “evidence,” and it’s partially thanks to theDestiny 2Content Vault.
According tocourt documents obtained by The Game Post, presiding judge Susie Morgan said the court won’t consider the videos and images in Bungie’s motion because they’re outside works not mentioned in the initial filing of the case. Because they’re not the original content and not within the scope of the original copyright claim, the court can’t use them as evidence. There’s a reason why Bungie used them in its motion instead of original game content, though. The company can’t access the originals because they’re now inthe Vault thatDestiny 2introduced in 2020, rendering them incompatible with the game’s current framework.
Destiny 2’s Content Vault Makes It Difficult for Bungie to Provide Evidence in Copyright Case
Destiny 2retires old content to the Vault so it can continually update the game without being held back by legacy code. While that makes it easier to add new things and modernize the game, it also means that outdated builds are harder to access. Bungie acknowledged this in its motion, saying the company “cannot feasibly provide” the campaigns in question “in operable or reviewable form,” hence its decision to include screenshots and videos of them from fan-run wikis. Given that restriction, it makes sense why the studio would go that route, but it ultimately fell short in getting the case dismissed. Not long ago,Bungie won a major copyright lawsuitas the plaintiff, but it will have to undergo another one as the defendant now that the motion for dismissal fell through.
How things will proceed from here is unclear. The trial will go on, but the Vault creates an unusual challenge in comparing the Red War storyline to Martineau’s works. Judge Morgan admitted that the analysis of the two works will be complicated in her decision to deny the dismissal, and how the court will work around those complications is uncertain. It’s not the only legal case Bungie is dealing with at the moment, either. A formerDestiny2dev hasfiled a lawsuit against Bungie and Sony, alleging he was falsely accused of sexual misconduct, which led to his termination. Both cases are ongoing, so the future of these companies and their legal standing is up in the air.
