Read this, then decide. After Marty’s tweet and Bungie’s post just a few hours ago, the community has flared in anger, sadness, and pain in the famed Martin O’ Donnell’s expulsion from the company. Much of the anger is clearly justified, as Marty’s unforgettable pieces in Bungie’s history have touched all, from the birthing days of Myth and Oni to the present day Halo series before the company split from Microsoft. Even to this day I feel a chill of excitement and adventure as I hear his pieces depicting heroes and passion, and it is a guaranteed fact that he will be missed. But we as the community do not wish for this to happen. Forums all over the site have petitioned for Marty’s re-hiring, scolding Bungie and its board of directors for firing who was the sound and music of their company. Many have even switched their profile pictures to a picture of Marty, attempting to get the attention of the company that they once thought had everything under control for the future. Their anger-our anger, is expected after this event. Even Bungie knows that “There are those who said this day would never come”. But as of now, riots have broken in the streets of Bungie’s community. You may be a reader that is also enraged by this turn of events, and your anger is indeed reasonable and truthful. What I must ask you now, as a very quiet member of this larger family of gamers and storytellers is this: Do you hate Bungie? Is this company that fired Marty now the villain of what you once knew and loved? Probably, or not? Many of you may think, “ABSOLUTELY. I thought Bungie was smarter than this. How the hell could they have done such a thing?!” But many of you may also think, “No. I am not angry with them. I am simply deeply disappointed. Marty was a staple to the Bungie team, and him leaving is like a story where our favorite character dies unexpectedly and blandly.” Bungie has left us many good memories throughout the years, regardless of when and how we were introduced. Halo itself is an instant classic, and it will forever remain so in history. Even now, as Halo is being produced by another company, we still have a sense that Bungie’s legacy would never die in the franchise. Now, Marty’s removal is big, VERY big. Nobody could argue with that. There are theories online that there was an internal conflict, whether it be on Marty’s side or not. Bungie still has not disclosed any information to the matter, only posting a brief segment given by Deej, Bungie’s community manager. “For more than a decade, Marty O’Donnell filled our worlds with unforgettable sounds and soundtracks, and left an indelible mark on our fans. Today, as friends, we say goodbye. We know that wherever his journey takes him, he will always have a bright and hopeful future. We wish him luck in all his future endeavors.” As do we Deej. We all know that Marty’s future, with or without Bungie, will be a never ending story of hope and success. Will Marty’s absence ruin the company as a whole? Well, that depends on us. Everyone is disappointed in Bungie’s decision, and even more so after they gave only an enigmatic reason for his leave. Because of this the community is in a frenzy, starting movements and succeeding from Bungie’s waters into Marty’s wake. God knows what both Marty and the company must be thinking and going through right now, but at this point one thing is certain. The community has started to be…irrational. I enter Bungie’s forum pages and what do I see? Angry members and Marty’s face EVERYWHERE. I look at the related hashtags on the page and what to I read? #MartyTheElder, #Martymovement, #Marty, #unfair, #why, #MartyArmy. The list continues. The community now sounds to me like a cult rather than a group of people in love with gaming and excited for Destiny. We are now split as a community; those siding with Marty and expressing hatred for Bungie and those attempting to consolidate us by using reasoning. Both sides, however, are fueled by a passion and emotion driven wild, regardless of the side. I doubt that this is what Bungie wanted, and neither would Marty. Opinions vs. facts. Marty vs. Bungie. Hatred vs. reason. These things will continue to be controversial even when Destiny launches later this year. A story must be told of Bungie in the coming years, and I’m sure many wish to know the reason behind Marty’s removal. We will never forget Marty’s unforgettable scores that gave many of us times that moved our hearts. Regardless of Bungie’s rational or irrational reasoning for this to happen, we must not let our souls be taken by anger and fear. Whether Marty returns to the company or not should not be our decision. This is a personal matter between Bungie’s directors and Marty himself. This is their own battle, and we have to let them battle on their own. This is not our fight. Who knows how Destiny’s future will turn into? Bungie keeps us in the dark on many things for a reason, and there’s no telling what machinations happen behind their air-tight doors. Even so, we will wait patiently for Destiny, and even more patiently for this matter to be finally settled. For out of the ashes of internal struggle is a gleaming light of life, and even the single spark of hope could ignite union. Look up! Look out! Destiny is on its approach and will hit the world hard. The wilderness to explore, the places to be seen, and the Fallen to be riddled with our bullets and disintegrated with our power. There is no doubt that this game will not only show the painstaking efforts of Bungie, but also that of Martin O’Donnell. To the community, to Bungie, and to Marty; I wish the best, and I wish the brightest. Stay Gold. I’ll see you when the sun rises over the horizon.

Haveing fun with my friends beats graphics any day in my book

Why are people cancelling their preorders, losing the adventure of a lifetime, all because Marty got fired? I'm sorry, I love his music too, but I fail to understand how a game is terrible because a member of the team is fired. Please explain it to me, because now you're acting like the COD fanboys.

I think you should either give us the actual reason you let Marty go or stop saying "Bungie listens and reacts to b.net" because reading these comments I don't think I am the only one who is astounded by this decision..

Is it possible that in the future of destiny production that I could carry my character from xbox360 to ps4 , I'm torn between graphics and friends who will play

You better rehire Marty or hire Hans Zimmer.

I feel so deflated. Honestly don't know what else to say...

Reported.

Are people even thinking of a possibility where Marty did something wrong? If so, he wouldn't go as far to admit it. And Bungie wouldn't point it out for the same face-saving reasons.

Are we able to have facial hair for are guardian?

I want to be a hunter because although I'm not a sniper I have always liked to be stealthy, silent and fast. Looking at the newest video I realize that the hand cannon was used in the primary slot. Does that means that we will not be alvilavle to use the hand cannon and a assault rifle at the same time?

... What are they to say now? Has the Sacred Icon been found? And with it, is our path to the divine beyond guaranteed? Or has Jason Jones (or Pete Parsons, or whoever actually runs the place) become the Prophet of Truth? Think about it. Let's say that Jason, Marty, and Joe Staten are/were the Hierarchs. Jason is obviously Truth, "The voice of Bungie". Marty is Mercy, with age and wisdom. And Joe is Regret, who lead from the front and was more active relative to the others. (If you know the Prophet's backstories, this actually fits very well.) Now that we have our characters, let's take a stroll down memory lane, shall we? Regret was killed by the Chief on the Delta Halo halfway through Halo 2, in the same way, Joe Staten left about halfway through Destiny's development. (And I think both Truth and Jason might have had a hand in ensuring these outcomes) Mercy was left to die at the hands of the flood, even though Truth could have easily let Tartarus save him (is Pete Parsons Tartarus? Food for thought). Truth gave no real reason for betraying Mercy, other than he was an obstacle to absolute power. Marty was similarly fired with no reason given (if one has, please tell me) and was fired near the end of development, like Mercy was left to die near the end of Halo 2. Maybe Jason doesn't like sharing the spotlight, maybe I'm just venting frustration by equivocating the situation to Halo 2, nothing is certain, is it?

well thats -blam!-ing bullshit

Are you going to be able to transfer your character from the beta to the full game?

Bungie probably just wants a hip composer who can make shitty electronic music to go along with their game so teenagers will be mind-numbingly impressed. Space opera doesn't resonate with the current generation duh wubwubwub