Bungie has officially announced that Marathon, its highly anticipated extraction shooter, will launch on September 23 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X. The revival of the classic franchise will first undergo a closed alpha testing phase beginning April 23, with sign-ups available through the game’s official Discord server.
Unlike its predecessor from three decades ago, the new Marathon reimagines the series as a competitive multiplayer extraction shooter. Players will form teams of three “Runners” who infiltrate the planet of Tau Ceti IV, collect loot, and attempt to escape with their valuable findings.
At launch, the game will feature:
– Six playable, customizable characters
– Three distinct maps (with a fourth map arriving post-launch)
– Full cross-play and cross-save functionality across all platforms
The fourth post-launch map will introduce the UESC Marathon ship, featuring what game director Joe Ziegler described as mysterious “raid-like” mechanics during a studio Q&A.
Not Following the Free-to-Play Model
In a notable departure from industry trends, Bungie confirmed Marathon will not be free-to-play, though specific pricing details remain unannounced. This aligns with Sony’s recent live service strategy, as both Helldivers 2 and Concord were also paid releases.
The game will implement a seasonal structure, with each season lasting approximately three months. These transitions will reset players’ vault and faction progress while introducing significant changes to the game world and pacing to encourage continued engagement.
Not “Destiny 3”
Ziegler emphasized that Marathon isn’t intended to replace Destiny 2, stating: “We don’t expect Marathon to become Destiny 3. Our goal is not to basically make a new product that replaces Destiny 2.”
He specifically cautioned that Destiny players who exclusively enjoy PvE content might not find Marathon appealing. “If you are a Destiny player who’s really not interested in any PvP at all, it’s probably not the game for you,” Ziegler warned, noting that player-versus-player encounters are inevitable in Marathon.
While Destiny players might have “a certain advantage” due to similar weapon systems, the game director acknowledged they’ll still face a learning curve with the new title.
Early hands-on previews have praised Marathon’s gunplay, with GamesRadar+ describing it as “unignorably good” while predicting its success will fall somewhere between the highly acclaimed Helldivers 2 and the less successful Concord.
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