Martin O’Donnell sues Bungie for unpaid benefits

On April 11, legendary Halo composer Martin O’Donnell was shockingly fired from Bungie after 14 years of serving as the company’s sound director. While the circumstances behind his firing were not reported, O’Donnell claims he was ‘terminated without cause’.

It has since been revealed that O’Donnell has filed a lawsuit against Bungie. He claims to be owed payment for vacation time, paid time off, sabbatical time, and other benefits, and requests double damages. Bungie and chief executive Harold Ryan have denied any damages are due.

Before leaving Bungie, O’Donnell had been co-writing the soundtrack for Destiny and producing the orchestral suite Music of the Spheres with Salvatori and Paul McCartney. The September 9 release of Destiny will not be affected by O’Donnell’s absence. In addition, O’Donnell has assured fans in his newsletter than Music of the Spheres will still be released in the near-future.

Posted on June 8, 2014 by Chris Greening. Last modified on June 10, 2014.

Tags: Bungie, Destiny, Halo, Martin O'Donnell, Michael Salvatori

About the Author

Chris Greening I've contributed to websites related to game audio since 2002. In this time, I've reviewed over a thousand albums and interviewed hundreds of musicians across the world. As the founder and webmaster of VGMO -Video Game Music Online-, I hope to create a cutting-edge, journalistic resource for all those soundtrack enthusiasts out there. In the process, I would love to further cultivate my passion for music, writing, and generally building things. Please enjoy the site and don't hesitate to say hello!