Bungie had a presence at Sony’s PlayStation Showcase but not for the reason you’re thinking. It unveiled Marathon, a new title in its illustrious first-person shooter series. However, as previously rumored, this is a PvP extraction shooter, with players controlling Runners as they explore Tau Ceti IV for “riches, fame and infamy.” There is no single-player campaign.
Marathon is coming to PS5, PC and Xbox Series X/S with crossplay and cross-save support. On the PlayStation Blog, general manager Scott Taylor and game director Christopher Barrett spoke a bit more about the game. Barrett confirmed it isn’t a direct sequel, but it “certainly belongs in the same universe.”
“We have a tremendous amount of respect for the original Marathon games and, from the very start, we’ve wanted to honor that, especially the mythology, story, and themes of the world. At the same time, our vision for this game is something new.”
“It’s our aim to create something incredible for players who are completely new to the Marathon world and those that have been waiting years for more stories in the Marathon universe. You don’t need to know anything about Marathon to understand or play this game, but if you do, we’re making the experience with references and deep cuts you’ll recognize.”
Of course, it will “feel” like a Bungie game, which means fans can expect the “incredible feel of the weapons” to “beautiful and evocative world building, rich in lore, immersion, and opportunities for an incredible adventure.” There’s a focus on player-based storytelling, which will rely on “many more ways to immerse players in this world, both in and out of the game. We’ll be carrying that through in the design of this game.”
Players can seemingly affect the world’s story with their actions (like discovering an artifact that opens up a whole new part of the map for everyone). Worlds are persistent with “evolving zones,” as “players create their own journey with every run they take.” While it seems there will be AI enemies, you’ll also fight against other players for loot.
As for how long it’ll take to release, Taylor said, “There’s still a lot of work to do before launch or even before we’re ready to talk about the game in more detail. The team is hard at work, and we’ve got a great base to start from, but there is still so much more to do, including continuing to grow our team. That’s one of the most challenging parts of game development: hiring when everything is still under wraps.
“Now that we’re announced, I’m excited because we can be much more candid about the positions we are looking for and talk more openly to candidates about the work that’s going on and our vision for the game.” While there’s no timeline on new information, Taylor promised that the next update on the title would feature gameplay and “be much closer to launch.” Stay tuned in the meantime.