Fired Marathon director says he’s settled a lawsuit with Sony and been inserted into the credits

The former Marathon director, Christopher Barrett, says he has ended a lawsuit against Bungie and PlayStation and had his name inserted into the game’s credits as part of a settlement.

Barrett, who was the original director of this year’s Marathon, had his employment terminated by Bungie in 2024, after more than 25 years at the company, for misconduct.

In court documents, Sony alleged that Barrett had sent inappropriate messages to female employees. Barrett denied the claims and called the investigation that led to his firing a “sham”.

Barett later sued Bungie and its parent company, Sony Interactive Entertainment, accusing it of defamation and breach of contract.

Notably, he alleged that Sony fired him in order to avoid paying him more than $45 million in bonuses generated from its 2022 purchase of the studio.

After a year of back-and-forth accusations, the lawsuit was dismissed for a lack of jurisdiction, only to be refiled earlier this year.

Marathon’s original director is back in the credits

Now, Barrett has announced that the case has been settled.

Writing on social media, the game designer wrote that he was “pleased to share that Sony, Bungie, and I have reached an agreement to resolve the lawsuit.”

He added: “The outcome is one I am very satisfied with, and I am grateful to everyone who stood by me. Closing this chapter allows me to focus my attention on what’s next in my gaming journey, and I look forward to what lies ahead.”

Further details of the settlement, such as potential monetary relief, were not shared.

Barrett posted a joint statement from both parties, which reads: “The litigation between Sony Interactive Entertainment, Bungie, and Christopher Barrett has been settled.

“For 25 years, Mr. Barrett contributed to some of Bungie’s most successful games. Mr. Barrett was the original Game Director for Marathon, and his name has been added to the game’s credits to reflect that.”

Barrett previously worked as an artist, art director and game director on the Halo and Destiny games, and was assigned as game director on Marathon before leaving the company in March 2024. He was eventually replaced by former Valorant game director Joe Ziegler.