Marathon’s gameplay loop is simple on paper, but the longer you play, the deeper the hooks sink. Marathon feels incredible, with weapons that are a literal blast to fire off at enemies. Each runner also has their own set of unique abilities. It doesn’t take long before you’re adjusting your attributes and actions to complement the team’s skill set.
(Credit: Bungie)
For example, my team encountered another team fighting a batch of UESC bots. While they were distracted, our thief sent a drone to pick gear off of the enemy’s sniper, while I used my assassin’s cloaking ability to reposition for the kill. With the whole team accounted for, we pounced on the unsuspecting trio. We were elbow deep into the enemy team’s loot when another squad, attracted by our noisy firefight, made sure our victory was short-lived.
These fights become even wilder with proximity chat. While I’ve had a few friendly encounters, the player base (so far) is not inclined to be cordial—if you’re on an enemy team, that is. Arc Raiders, this is not. Luckily, I’ve had more success finding strangers willing and able to work together to complete contracts. It’s possible to play Marathon as a single-player game and queue up in solo player lobbies. Although this makes contracts easier to complete, Marathon was clearly crafted with teams in mind. Bungie has also experimented with two-player lobbies, so the developer is open to experimentation.
That said, the game offers a shell for single-player play. Called “The Rook,” this runner type is unique in that you can’t choose its loadout before deploying. You also cannot complete contracts with it. Rooks spawn roughly 10-15 mins into a game already in progress, and your sole purpose is to loot whatever remains. It’s a great way to restock on supplies if your armory is cleared out after a string of losses. Additionally, you probably won’t lose anything good if you fail to extract, because the gear is randomized.
Marathon is dynamic in the same way Hades II and other roguelikes keep things fresh with every run. Sometimes, you’ll run into nobody and exfiltrate without issues. Sometimes, you’ll find that everyone in the lobby seems to have the same objective as you. Loot also changes from run to run, so it’s best not to always follow the same path.
(Credit: Bungie)
As you complete objectives, you’ll be able to upgrade each faction’s skill tree, improving abilities while unlocking weapons and gear that’ll give you a better chance on the battlefield. Emphasis on chance, because better gear doesn’t always mean an easier fight. And there’s plenty of guns to find, including shotguns, pistols, and railguns. In true Bungie style, each gun feels distinct, with its own weight and sound. More importantly, they all feel exceptional to fire.
As I lost more time to Marathon, I came to appreciate the gameplay friction. Marathon may seem dense at first, especially for someone new to this genre. The menus are dizzying, the gameplay loop unforgiving, and most of the game’s objectives are vague. Still, no matter how frustrated I got after a bad run, the highs of a hard-fought victory, getting the last hit in a tense firefight, or finding a rare material and successfully extracting with it, made it all worthwhile.
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In truth, Marathon reminded me of one of my favorite games, the very unrelated Dead Rising—and not because of its difficulty. It’s how the game expects you to play by its rules. You’re supposed to experiment, wander levels, and repeatedly die. If you’re frustrated by how homogenous shooters have become, Marathon is a breath of fresh air. It’s confident in its mechanics, so you’ll find a game that’s rich in depth if you’re willing to buy into what it offers.
Although there’s an overblown obsession with Marathon’s dwindling player count, Bungie’s determined to keep the game’s content flowing. There’s no indication that Marathon will go the way of Concord, Sony’s last attempt at a AAA live-service game (one that shut down after only three weeks). Since its release, Marathon has introduced a ranked mode and a new, weekend-only map called the Cryo Archive, a high-level area that requires you to bring your best gear every time you enter. Hopefully, Bungie will support this title for years to come.
