Summary
It’s been a mixed year for Bungie. In the span of just two months, Bungie releasedDestiny 2: The Final Shape, one of the game’s most acclaimed expansions and a love letter to fans, and also laid off 220 of its employees, with Sony citing “the efficiency of the business” as a core reason. Thefuture of Bungieis looking a tad uncertain right now, but the studio’s next game,Marathon, is still chugging along in development.
First announced in May 2023,Marathonwill be a live-service extraction shooter that revives Bungie’s old 1990s Sci-Fi IP. Though official details onMarathon’s development have been rare, there have been plenty of leaks and rumors surrounding the live-service game. The latest batch of rumors comes from The Game Post’s Zuhaad Ali, who claims to have been told some important details from anonymous sources, details such asMarathon’s potential price tag.
All leaks and rumors should always be taken with a pinch of salt.
Marathon’s Latest Rumors Explained
Marathon’s Rumored Price Tag
In its recent report, The Game Post states that “several sources familiar” withMarathonhave claimed Bungie is targeting a $40 price tag for the live-service game’s launch. ThoughMarathonwill be a multi-platform title at launch that hits both Xbox and PC, it’ll still technically be afirst-party PlayStation title, with Bungie being a first-party Sony studio. As such, this rumored $40 price tag would make a lot of sense, givenHelldivers 2andConcordreleased at that same price point.
Of course,Concord’s $40 price tag was a major point of contention before the game’s release, and it’s widely considered to be a factor in the game’s disastrously low sales and absurdly quick shutdown. That being said,Helldivers 2’s $40 price tagwas met with very little criticism upon its release in February, with many fans seeing it as a fair price to pay for such a unique multiplayer co-op experience. As long asMarathonends up offering some kind of distinct, original, high-quality experience, its potential $40 price tag could seem fair.
Marathon’s Other Leaked Details
The Game Post’s recent report also mentioned a few more details concerningMarathon’s ongoing development. The Game Post’s Zuhaad Ali claims that multiple sources have confirmed thatMarathonis not ahero shooter likeOverwatchorConcord. Instead,Marathonwill feature a class system that provides players with a unique set of abilities and skills, apparently offering quite different playstyles. According to one of The Game Post’s sources,Marathonwill play similarly to extraction shooters likeEscape From Tarkov, but will feature a “Bungie twist.”
This report also mentioned that two maps are currently in a playable state. The first map is set on an abandoned colony planet, and the second is set on the titular Marathon spaceship, which eager fans spotted during the game’s announcement trailer as a large dagger-shaped ship stabbing through a fractured moon. The Game Post mentions that it doesn’t know if these two maps will be the only ones available atMarathon’s launch, or if more are in development.
A final tidbit from The Game Post’s report is that Bungie is reportedly spending a lot of time and effort refiningMarathon’s onboarding process.Destiny 2’s new player experience has been heavily criticized for being overly complex and overwhelming out of the gate, and according to this report, Bungie has listened to that feedback and is ensuring that doesn’t happen withMarathon.
