Ah Marathon, the game that was revealed to a rocky reception and a tricky little copyright scandal that seemed to have cleared up quickly. It was originally announced on May 24th 2023, but with many issues since then, it looks like that things may start to change. Bungie have been toying around with NDA-bound closed play testing for Marathon, and it looks like the latest leaks of info have highlighted the addition of a new runner for the extraction-based shooter, an overhauled faction system and much more.
With Marathon initially aiming to launch on September 23rd of this year, we got close to seeing what Bungie had to offer. However, they delayed the launch of the upcoming title following a lack of good feedback around the alpha testing, but not just this, the whole scandal surrounding the stolen art for the game. Bungie thought it was best to give the live-service shooter more development time and give a new window of release in the fall. During this period, the acclaimed studio held play tests every month which gave players early access to new builds. The most recent play test ran from September 5–7, and even though Bungie took steps to remain tight-lipped, a familiar insider has managed to get details regarding the latest updates.
On X (formerly Twitter), a very well-known Destiny 2 data miner, Deakstiny, recently posted a thorough breakdown which Bungie has since issued DMCA takedowns for, of several upgrades worth taking note of in the most recent play test. As I mentioned, factions are receiving an overhaul. The faction screen has been completely reskinned with all six in-game factions: Cyberacme, Nucalorie, Traxus, MIDA, Arachne and Sekiguchi, getting full visual overhauls and cinematic intros which last more than 30 seconds each. Cosmetics from the last game test were removed, which left Marathon players with only the basic default skins. However, a new runner, whose name is “Icon”, hints at future customisation options with her “Default skin 01” label.
Icon, the new runner who was formerly codenamed as “Thief”, has seen Marathon usher in a new dynamic, as the unique abilities for the character feature a grappling hook, similar to that of Apex Legends’ Pathfinder, an X-ray vision mode that spots loot and gives you the enemies’ outlines and a loot-stealing drone which is capable of pulling rare items from opponents. Moving on to the map side of things for Marathon, play testers began on the remodelled Outpost map, which now features environmental hazards like falling sparks that deal damage over time. Further into the session, players were introduced to Cryo Archive, the first playable map which is set on board of the UESC Marathon ship. This new map looks to incorporate puzzle-like elements which need keys and items to progress. However, some areas of the map appear unfinished and still in the works for the next test or release.
Bungie are certainly taking the game seriously, as they rewarded players who logged in daily to the play tests with $500 gift cards! The studio looks to be bringing more to the game as they have plans to bring proximity chat, smarter and responsive AI, additional narrative and environmental storytelling elements, new types of loot AND dynamic encounters. With all the news circulating about Marathon, Bungie needs a take-off from this game, as things have been touching and going with the studio for a little while, but with them taking the game seriously and really knuckling down in the testing stages, we could see some of Bungie’s best work, and at the time of writing, there isn’t a current release date set, but if we look to the potential PlayStation state of play which could be coming at the end of September, it could still be on the horizon!
What do you guys think? Will the game arrive and shock the fans, or will it simply arrive DOA? I hope Bungie can get back to better ways as they were the flagship for the Halo franchise, and it’s kind of sad to see how things have gone for them. With them still pushing updates out for Destiny 2 in an attempt to keep people interested, I hope they get some form of revival! If you’re new around here, make sure to drop by our Facebook page at Everything Xbox!
