Whether you’re a newcomer to the genre or you’re a diehard extraction shooter fan, Bungie’s upcoming title Marathon looks like a veritable feast of cybernetic neon and pixels. Revealed as part of a live Marathon Gameplay Reveal Showcase – and featuring PvPvE gameplay, different mechanics for different characters, and a selection of maps with shifting weather and dynamics – there’s certainly seems to be a lot of meat on the bone for players looking for something to sink their teeth into.
In Marathon, you play as a ‘runner’, or mercenary, who has abandoned their human form in favour of a cybernetic shell in order to get sent into the dangerous world of Tau Ceti IV, scavenge a bunch of loot, and make a fortune. In squads of up to three players, you’ll traverse maps that hold a trove of secrets, incentives and loot – but to get to them, you’ll have to eliminate up to 15 other players all striving to do the exact same thing.
“When it comes to the squad sizes … it came ultimately down to what is a manageable enough size for people to coordinate with, while also not creating squad sizes that are so big that it becomes difficult to field multi-front battles with them,” said Joe Ziegler, Game Director of Marathon, in a pre-briefing for the game.
With mechanics that allow you to revive fellow squadmates and incentives to keep the gang all together, there’s all the more reason for players to lock in a solid squad – however, if they’re brave enough to go in solo and face down up to 17 other foes (depending on the map), the option is always available.
In the gameplay reveal trailer, Marathon looks slick and sharp – appealing not only to experienced players but also to fans of cyber aesthetics, sci-fi stories and multiplayer games. Even if you’re a newcomer to the extraction shooter genre, you’ll be well catered to and won’t be simply thrown way into the deep end.
“One of our focuses on matchmaking this early as we’re going into alpha is really to focus on separating out newer, inexperienced players from more experienced players as it goes on,” said Ziegler.
“We haven’t focused on gear based matchmaking … Honestly, part of it is that we’re really focused on making sure the texture of what drops inside the game is always potentially wide, so if you are in a match with somebody who has better gear and you do get that jump, you really feel that jackpot moment.”
Read: PS Plus: Game Catalogue for April 2025
What does the future of Marathon look like?
With a release date later this year and a North American-based Alpha set to begin later this month, it’s safe to say that Marathon has a full calendar ahead, but even beyond that, the team are already planning out further seasons – aiming for four per year, one per quarter.
“We are planning on doing seasonal wipes in between every season and part of the reasoning behind that is we want every season to feel like its own unique journey,” said Ziegler. “So instead of having every season be kind of like an identical grind, we’re focused on seasons themselves being a different kind of sort of progression and climb for how the player plays through it.”
Rest assured, however, that any cosmetics you accrue will carry over between seasons, so you’ll be able to amass a fun collection of skins and aesthetic changes over time. With such a dynamic and distinctive cyber aesthetic, the game does allow you to get funky with customisation in order to set your runner apart from the rest.
Finally, in fun Easter egg news, the game also reportedly includes a collection of nods to Marathon legacy, referencing the 1994 game in small but meaningful ways. It’s a sweet little nod to the history, and will definitely provide fans of the original with something niche and specific to look forward to.
“There are a lot of elements that we are taking from the original Marathon,” said Ziegler. “Obviously, we’ve updated a lot of things, you know, especially when it comes to the visuals and how we display the IP of Marathon, but in terms of the story we’re taking some turns.”
As for how those turns will manifest, we’ll have to wait and see for a little while longer. Marathon is set to release globally on September 23 2025 (which usually means September 24th in Australia), and will be available on PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. On the plus side, the game will have full cross play and cross save capability, so when the time comes, you can team up with friends regardless of their chosen platform.
