We now have some gameplay details for Bungie’s newest game in the Marathon franchise, and this new information clinches just how different this game will be to the classic Marathon games of old.
For starters, instead of a narrative driven first person shooter, this new game will be an extraction shooter. The comparison we will make here is to Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2’s DMZ mode; you enter an area, ‘extract’ as many supplies and resources as you can, and you get a small window to escape the area or else you lose everything you collected. As reported by Insider Gaming, while Bungie has dubbed this as a three person extraction shooter, you can play as a pair or solo, but your opponents will likely be a team of three.
Marathon will also have a new oxygen system, which functions exactly as it did in Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel. Your character has to use oxygen canisters to breathe; if you run out you have to find a replacement, or risk dying.
Your oxygen can also be compromised alongside your health, for example if you’re shot in the waist and you supply is hit. You will be able to buff up your oxygen supply with perks and bonuses in game.
This is the planned gameplay loop:
- Chose your missions (to complete in the game)
- Buy / Chose your loadout/perks/abilities/gear
- Drop into a server
- Hunt for loot / Complete missions / Explore and find secrets
- Extract
- Spend XP on Updates
- Repeat
Permadeath will also be a part of the game, but it won’t be as harsh as in a Soulsborne game. You will never lose your perks no matter how many times you die. You can lose implants, and are guaranteed to lose the loot you collect if you die in a match.
Bungie has ambitions to make Marathon the ultimate live service game, so it will feature single digit load times and replayable maps with plenty to find. I obviously don’t have to elaborate on how this is just the complete antithesis to the original Marathon games, that had you fighting both an alien invasion and a rogue AI. At the very least, this game will actually be set smack dab in the middle of the timeline, between the classic games, so Bungie could use environmental storytelling to add to that world.
If you still haven’t played those classic Marathon games, you can always download and check them out here. These ports to modern platforms are fully legal, as they meet the redistribution mandates set by Bungie. However, they were not developed by Bungie themselves, but are instead part of an independent project, called Aleph One.
Marathon is planned for release on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Windows (no it will not be coming to Mac).
