Bungie Begins Marathon Playtesting

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Bungie Begins Marathon Playtesting

Key Takeaways

  • Bungie is purportedly inviting gaming influencers and content creators to playtest Marathon.
  • YouTuber HiddenXperia recently confirmed his week-long involvement in the Marathon playtests, describing the game as “surreal.”
  • These external playtests may indicate that Bungie is preparing to reveal more details about Marathon in the coming months.

As a seasoned gamer with over three decades of gaming under my belt, I can hardly contain my excitement as Bungie invites content creators like me to playtest Marathon, their upcoming live-service extraction shooter. Having grown up playing the original Marathon games from the 90s and eagerly awaiting this revival, I feel like I’ve been given a golden ticket to Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory!

It appears that Bungie has started playtesting sessions for its future live-service shooter game, which goes by the name Marathon. Notable gaming personalities and content makers have reportedly been stopping by at Bungie’s headquarters to give Marathon a spin and presumably share their thoughts on it.

In the summer of 2023, it was revealed that Marathon is making a comeback as a revival of Bungie’s acclaimed first-person shooter series from the ’90s. Unlike the original Marathon games which focused heavily on campaigns, the upcoming reboot is an online service game, drawing influence from extraction shooters such as Escape from Tarkov. Rebooting franchises often involve new directions, but the reputation of Marathon has faced challenges due to its problematic development process, including allegations of misconduct, creative team departures, potential delays, and more.

There are whispers that Bungie is aiming for a 2025 release date for the game Marathon, although this hasn’t been officially confirmed yet. The latest news about Marathon costing $40 adds weight to these rumors, since pricing is typically decided during later stages of development. Given that Bungie has begun inviting content creators and influencers to playtest Marathon, a 2025 release now appears more likely. YouTuber HiddenXperia has even tweeted about playing Marathon at Bungie for the past week, sharing an image of a personalized Marathon ID tag as well.

YouTuber HiddenXperia Describes Marathon as a “Surreal Experience”

More creators haven’t publicly disclosed their participation in the Marathon playtests yet, but initial feedback from HiddenXperia appears positive. Although HiddenXperia couldn’t share specific details (likely due to non-disclosure agreements), they described the Marathon experience as “unusual.” Whether this term is used positively remains uncertain, but it does suggest that Marathon might live up to its unique sci-fi aesthetic. It seems that those involved in the Marathon playtests may be under a gag order, meaning they can’t discuss their experiences with the game until after the embargo lifts. So, those eager for more information about Marathon will have to wait for now.

Furthermore, if the game “Marathon” appears ready for external testing, Bungie might be preparing to disclose additional details (including a definite launch date) about their live-service shooter in the upcoming months. The only significant gaming event left for 2024 is the Game Awards ceremony, but there’s also talk about Sony hosting another State of Play event before year’s end, revealing more highly anticipated PS5 exclusives set to release in 2025. If “Marathon”‘s marketing campaign indeed starts this year, then the latter event seems more likely, although everything is still uncertain.

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2024-10-10 10:34