Bungie and Nerf investigating claims that Destiny 2 gun design has been plagiarised

Destiny maker Bungie and toy manufacturer Nerf are investigating claims that the design for their recently revealed Ace of Spades Nerf gun directly copied elements from a fan design in 2015.

X user @Tofu_Rabbit claimed on Wednesday that the new toy gun copies design elements, as well as brush stroke and smudge effects from their original design.

They also posted a side-by-side image showing what they claim are very similar, and in some cases identical design elements.

Bungie now says it is looking into the matter, and will update “on what next steps we are taking once we have gathered more information”.

Complicating matters will be the fact that the gun is not just in-game content but an actual phsyical Nerf gun that players can pre-order.

Bungie recently announced that Destiny 2 will adopt a new release model.

Instead of one large annual expansion, the developer will aim to release two medium-sized expansions and four major free content updates every year, it said.

Each of these will depart from the “one-shot” campaign structure Bungie has been using since Shadowkeep, and each will be an opportunity “to explore exciting new formats instead”.

Bungie announced in July that it was laying off 220 staff (roughly 17% of the studio), with a further 155 staff being “integrated” into Sony Interactive Entertainment.