CHICAGO-A super-size scandal involving its promotional games was the last thing McDonald’s Corp. needed on top of a beef safety scare in Europe, a weakened economy and vegetarians’ lawsuits over its french fries.

But Wall Street restaurant industry experts and customers appear to have little beef with the fast-food giant about the conspiracy that denied patrons $13 million in cash and prizes since 1995.

Instead, the marketing company that was implicated in the alleged fixing of the games is taking the hit.

McDonald’s fired Simon Marketing Inc. on Tuesday after federal authorities accused one of its employees of masterminding a multistate criminal ring that cashed in on the burger maker’s popular “Monopoly” and “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?” promotions by hoarding winning game pieces. Eight people were arrested, including the security employee, Jerome Jacobson of Lawrenceville, Ga.

The scandal’s impact on McDonald’s will be “a wave in the tide, a minor blip,” McDonald’s officials said.