It’s been a long time since Destiny 2’s launch, so it might have been easy to forget the Red War and some of its characters and story structure, but the similarities between that narrative and the work of an author are at the center of a lawsuit that Bungie is facing.
Matthew Kelsey Martineau, who was writing under the pen name Caspar Cole in 2013 and 2014, alleges that Bungie’s 2017 Red War storyline bears “deliberate and intentional” resemblances to his own published work on his WordPress blog, including the backstory of the main antagonists, the goal of capturing a massive celestial power, and the use of a superweapon as a threat.
Martineau’s complaint points out additional similarities between his work and Destiny 2’s, including calling elite troops legionnaires, dog-like beasts, the concept of consciousness transfer, and the use of a fail-safe tool (that isn’t specifically named Failsafe) to avert disaster.
Martineau is seeking a jury by trial and relief in the form of statutory damages, legal fees, materials related to the Red War narrative, and a constructive trust over proceeds Bungie earned as a result of publishing the story. Bungie has yet to make a statement about the lawsuit.
