It seems that Bungie, the studio behind one of the gaming generations’ defining games, Halo, and then Destiny, is ready to unveil something new. It’s called Marathon, and this name is very reminiscent of the classic Bungie back in the day. But this is not the Marathon of your father’s generation. It’s something completely different, an extraction shooter with PvP as a central point. Picture it, sneaking around, stealing the loot, and then trying to escape while others are after you. The ambiance created here is entirely different from the usual calmness associated with their games.
Hype has surged high and the public’s curiosity is already aroused. A recent tweet by DestinyTracker just added marbles to the pile. They spoke frankly to the community: “Are you looking forward to Marathon? Will you go for pre-order?” My opinion is that the replies consist of one part pure excitement and another part very critical but still cautious reactions. So, it is a perfect mixture of gamer excitement and skepticism all at once.
First of all, it is the hard core fans that one notices the most. These are the ones who have already started to count their money. For instance, user VivaLaDoctor said: “Immediate collector’s edition pre-order.” This is commitment! Facelessman is also speaking about the possible scenario of having “2 at the minimum,” which is either extreme dedication or a plan for him and a buddy. Same like that there is also RiseOfBacon who is not only ecstatic but also quite confident that this game will be a ‘banger.’ They also mentioned ARC Raiders which is another upcoming extraction shooter and by that hint they implied that the genre is getting hotter hence making Marathon even more thrilling. “The FPS side of things will make it much sweatier though,” they added and that is probably true. Bungie has built its brand around the gunplay, and now when it comes to high risks, losing your loot will be a matter of life or death. Yikes!
Emotions of anticipation among the gamers have reached such a level that it seems they can no longer articulate it. User ExoSmack’s reaction was simply “Dude. Fuck. Yes…” along with a hype GIF. Theidkguy could only remark “Just speechless.” Yolo offered a strangely specific rating of “hype 7.9/10” which I somehow find amusing. So, it is not a perfect 10, it is a 7.9. However, still keeping it real.
The situation is that for every ecstatic guardian, there is a player holding a brake. Our Man Flint got straight to the point of a huge concern for many: “Nah, I can’t like a game where you lose all your loot.” That is actually the main feature of the extraction shooter genre, and for many, it is a deal-breaker. While the tension created is the core of the game, at the same time it is a big barrier to entry. Cíarán Whyte was even more explicit with a simple “Nope and nope,” in response to both questions in the tweet. No excitement, no pre-order. Period.
Then there are the ‘wait and see’ people who take a middle of the road approach. Voidboi24 summed it up nicely: “I will probably pre-order, but I may wait for the open weekend, play, and see then.” This is probably the best course of action, to be honest. Bungie has already indicated that they will be conducting some sort of public test before the game release. So why spend money on a game you haven’t even had the chance to experience the gameplay yet? And DamnLeo08 had a… rather hot take. “Yes. Let the noobs stay on Arconcord.” Ouch. That’s some serious gamer intensity, completely defining the player base already. “Arconcord” is presumably an insult directed towards ARC Raiders, positioning it as the more casual option. The community dynamics, in fact, are already taking shape before the game is launched!
So what’s the big deal about Marathon? Bungie has been very clear that this is not a replacement for Destiny. It is a separate entity. It is a Sci-Fi game, it has that fabulous Bungie art style which is always a winner for us, and it is all about the PvP tension in these uncertain, looted runs. The fact that it is Bungie and not some other studio that is developing this automatically gives the game a big credibility boost. These guys know how to make shooter games feel good. However, the extraction genre is a hard nutshell to crack. It’s merciless. Not everyone is a fan.
The major question hanging over everything though is that pre-order thing. Nowadays, pre-ordering is… complicated. We have been burnt before. Games launch with problems, server issues, missing features. Bungie has a great reputation in terms of console development, but this is a new genre for them. Meanwhile, the broader gaming landscape, including major platforms like Xbox, continues to evolve.
