Marathon Review – For Now, It’s A Sprint

Look, extraction shooters are kinda hit or miss, even more so than battle royales, honestly. A lot of people get turned off by the idea of losing all your hard-earned gear if you mess up a raid, but for me, and a bunch of others, that’s what makes it so exciting! And this new game, Marathon, looks like it’s going to nail that feeling, plus it’s got a really unique and wild art style that’s got me hyped.

Despite a solid base, the game isn’t quite reaching its full potential. Hopefully, the developers at Bungie will refine it and make it even better.

Marathon Is More Than Meets The Eye

There’s More Here Than Your Average Extraction Shooter

Marathon is a classic ‘extraction’ game. If you’re new to the genre, you start with a set of gear, collect valuable items while you’re in the game, and then try to safely leave the map – that’s called ‘extracting’.

I usually play these kinds of games with friends over voice chat, but some are starting to cater to us solo players. One example is Marathon, which has features like proximity chat so you’re not totally alone, and they’ve even got a whole class designed specifically for people like me who prefer to go it alone!

Speaking of classes (called “shells” in the Marathon universe) here are your options:

Destroyer (Offense)
Vandal (Movement)
Recon (Intel)
Assassin (Invisibility)
Triage (Healing)
Thief (Heist)
Rook (Solo)

Each of these robotic bodies can fight effectively on its own, even without using its special powers. After trying them all, I decided Triage was my favorite. Its ability to quickly heal was a huge help, especially for players who took risks, and it saved me from failing many missions.

I tested several control schemes, but wasn’t surprised to find that Marathon handled exceptionally well – that’s a hallmark of recent Bungie games. Despite my issues with both Destiny 1 and 2, the fundamental shooting mechanics were always solid. The guns in Marathon feel great to use, and while the special abilities are more subtle than in Destiny, they’re still powerful and create opportunities for impressive plays.

Even if you’re new to games where you collect items and escape, you can still have great plays and recover your equipment. This game is designed to be played with a team, so rely on your squadmates!

Progressing through Marathon, you’ll follow the same basic game flow:

Select a contract (a form of quests), loadout, and shell
Load into a map
Grab loot while aiming to complete contracts
Exfiltrate the map using specific points

Most runs take about 15 to 20 minutes, which is a good length for busy people like me. It’s a nice balance – you can quickly explore, make some progress, and then finish up (or try your best!). Although more maps would be ideal, the ones currently available are beautifully designed and full of detail.

It took about five playthroughs to get used to Marathon and figure out the best ways to play. For example, I learned to load up on ammo before each run so I wouldn’t run out quickly. These little things are key to doing well, and while some aspects of the game become clear naturally, others are quite confusing – sometimes intentionally, sometimes just by accident (I’ll explain more in a bit).

So, as I play, I’ll be unlocking new maps to explore, better gear to use, and more contracts to take on. There’s also a cool system where I earn bonuses for the current season, like being able to store more stuff in my vault. But Bungie’s planning on resetting all that progress each season, which is kinda cool because it gives everyone a fresh start and keeps things interesting.

This change has both pros and cons. Some players appreciate starting each season with a fresh start, while others are upset about losing the progress they’ve earned, even if it’s just cosmetic items. I fall somewhere in between those viewpoints, and I don’t think these seasonal resets are a major issue right now.

There Are Lots Of Hangups, Though

And They Add Up

The user interface is a major issue, and it’s quite disorganized. Even for players familiar with extraction shooters and RPGs, it feels awkward and difficult to navigate on PC. The icons for different items look too similar, making it hard to quickly identify what you have. While some might enjoy taking the time to learn each item, it can be frustrating when you’re in the middle of a run.

The fast-paced action of scavenging under fire is exciting, but reading detailed descriptions of every item you find can be tedious when you’re deciding what to keep or sell. While you eventually get used to the game’s terminology, it doesn’t quite offer the simple, pick-up-and-play experience of other extraction shooters.

One major drawback of Marathon is its unrewarding “reward pass,” which functions like a season pass. It doesn’t seem Bungie learned from the past eight years of similar systems, as it lacks in-game currency and exciting rewards. In fact, it’s as lackluster as the Halo Infinite season pass was when it first launched, and arguably even worse. A positive aspect, though, is that Marathon‘s passes don’t expire, mirroring a good feature from the current version.

Honestly, as a player, I’m really hoping Bungie tackles the user interface soon. The game itself looks amazing when you’re actually playing, but navigating the menus feels clunky and frustrating. It really needs a complete redesign to make things smoother.

Marathon Could Evolve Into Something More

It Has A Great Baseline

The final major update for Marathon is planned for a few weeks after the game releases, adding more things to do repeatedly. Bungie calls this update, ‘The Cryo Archive,’ and describes it as the ultimate endgame experience. However, players will need to progress far into the game to access it. While this update is coming, it doesn’t change the fact that players are currently paying $40 for the game as it exists at launch.

Even though the game has a few issues, I think Marathon is the type of game I’d happily return to after a big update. Right now, it’s a little frustrating, but not enough to stop me from playing, either solo or with friends.

2026-03-09 23:01