When is the Marathon release date? Marathon is a forthcoming first-person shooter from Bungie, the team behind hit games like Destiny 2 and the original Halo. It’s been a while since the first trailer gave us the scoop on what players could expect from the game, which was rumored to be in development for quite some time before Bungie’s actual announcement in May 2023.
And, while the Marathon release date is still quite a way away, the hype is real given Bungie’s history of delivering unrivaled gunplay and the stunning trailer that re-introduced gamers to the remake of the FPS game, which remains a classic.
Marathon release date estimate
Bungie confirms that Marathon is launching on Tuesday September 23. It’s coming to PC via Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series consoles. A closed alpha is also coming for North American players.
Bungie CEO Pete Parsons confirmed in a 2019 interview that a non-Destiny game would be released by the end of 2025. However, Marathon has made “aggressive changes” after Ziegler took the helm, and the game director’s most recent comments as of the October 2024 dev update indicate there’s still a way to go. Should Marathon enter a larger scale closed beta test or even open beta in 2025, 2026 is the logical deduction for a full-fledged launch.
Some theories were circulating that the Marathon release date could be April 27, 2025, due to a date formatted number on the thigh of a runner in the official trailer, however, due to Bungie being based out of America and the date formatting being in UK-style, alongside Ziegler’s dev update, we’re inclined to disagree with these rumors. At the very least, we are getting a gameplay reveal showcase on April 12, so check back later once the studio reveals more.
What is Marathon?
This version of Marathon is a reimagined version of the space game of the same name that Bungie released in 1994. The series continued with annual installments, with Marathon 2: Durandal in 1995 and Marathon Infinity in 1996. The original trilogy were single-player Doom-like FPS games available only on Mac OS, the ill-fated Apple Pippin console, and iOS. As such, the Marathon trilogy has a niche cult following.
This modern Marathon will be a PvP-based game with no single-player campaign element. Players can play solo or in crews of up to three people. Bungie has clarified this is not a remake or a sequel to the 1994 game but set in the same world.
“Become a Runner in Bungie’s new sci-fi PvP extraction shooter. Compete for survival, riches, and renown in a world of evolving, persistent zones, where any run can lead to greatness,” Bungie describes the game on the official Marathon website.
A story description regales a tale of a ghost ship over a lost colony on Tau Ceti IV, home to 30,000 souls that have disappeared. As a Runner, which is a cybernetic mercenary, you’ll enter an area that’s full of Artifacts, dormant AI, weapons, and more in a fight for infamy and fame.
The game is an Escape from Tarkov-style extraction shooter, and your objective is to collect items you need while staying alive and avoiding death from environmental elements or other players. Any items you collect will level up your character to make them stronger, giving them the tools they need to survive future missions. Artifacts can be combined to make even stronger tools called Prime Artifacts.
Unlike some extraction shooters, the game centers on a broader narrative that will unfold throughout each season. The development team has suggested there are many ways to become “famous or infamous” in the game, such as through leaderboards, being the first to unlock zones, or helping other players throughout your journey.
Marathon Game Director Christopher Barrett confirmed the game is not intended to be a sequel. “It’s not a direct sequel to the originals, but something that certainly belongs in the same universe and that feels like a Bungie game,” Barrett said in the Bungie blog post.
The game also features a unique, cyberpunk-esque art style full of bright, vibrant colors. In true Bungie style, it will have Bungie-like elements of deep lore, a unique design style, and solid gunplay and weaponry.
Marathon gameplay
While we still have a little longer to wait for the first official Marathon gameplay drop on April 12, 2025, Ziegler has shared a few tidbits of information about what we can expect to experience in-game.
First and foremost, Marathon will follow the standard extraction shooter formula. As Ziegler describes the genre, “it’s a game type where you essentially go into a dangerous world, a world filled with hostile mobs and players alike that are all existing in that environment, and are a huge threat to you, and challenge your ability to survive and get out alive.
“The goal of every session is to get out alive, and along the way, you’re going to be completing quests, finding loot that will either help you upgrade yourself or things you can equip to make yourself stronger. If you get out alive, all that loot is yours to keep. If you don’t, you will be losing all of that and someone else will be able to take that from you.”
Ziegler notes that Marathon in particular will feature stat-boosting or gameplay-changing equipment, alongside utility consumables like mines and grenades, and survival consumables. Marathon’s characters, known as Runners, each come with “a small subset of abilities,” and can be customized. It’s all pretty standard fare so far.
As for the overall vibe, Marathon will be drawing on the “psychological creepiness” of the original, meshed with modern elements. The striking art style has already demanded our attention, and the ‘save the date’ trailer gives us a sneak peek at the way it’s subverting traditional color palettes with blue blood and salmon-pink cats.
Does Marathon have crossplay?
Marathon will be available on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox series X/S and will feature crossplay and cross-save. This means that players should be able to play with their friends no matter what platforms their pals choose to play on and that a player’s account information and cosmetics should be accessible from any platform on which they own the game.
That’s everything we know about Marathon, the forthcoming multiplayer game from the team behind Halo and Destiny 2. We’ll continue updating this guide with more information as Bungie releases it, so check back in the future for more news.
