Game review: Marathon (PS5)

Bungie became a household name in the video game community for creating the famous Halo franchise, which debuted on the original Xbox in 2001. Halo went on to become Xbox's most iconic IP, and it's still famous to this day. 

However, Bungie left Microsoft after the release of Halo: Reach in 2010 and began developing a new IP called Destiny. Unlike Halo at the time, Destiny was a third-party release that reached more players than ever before. 

Despite the popularity of Destiny and Destiny 2, Bungie made the surprising decision not to make Destiny 3. After being bought out by Sony for over $3 billion USD, Bungie revived its old Marathon IP instead. 

Bungie released a trilogy of Marathon games back in the '90s, although the games weren't as well-known as the DOOM series. Much like the DOOM series, though, the Marathon games were enjoyable single-player FPS games with cool guns and creative enemy designs. 

Sadly, the 2026 Marathon game available for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S does not have many things in common with the original trilogy. Instead of making a game with a cool story campaign, Marathon 2026 is a multiplayer-only extraction shooter with limited content and a small number of maps available at launch. 

The thing that makes Marathon 2026 seem so expensive is the fact that the game isn't free-to-play like many other live service titles. The base price for the game is around $69.99 NZD, but console players get burned by needing to purchase an online subscription to even get permission to play the game on top of that. 

As a person who doesn't play online multiplayer games very often, the game prompted me to pay for a PlayStation Plus subscription before I even reached the main menu! Even though the $69.99 base price is lower than full-priced games, the monthly subscription on PlayStation and Xbox will make the game more expensive in the long run anyway. 

The only reason I'm discussing the price of Marathon 2026 is that at launch, it does not feel like it's worth the money at the moment. A little over a month after launch in early March, the game still only has four maps. 

The game isn't a battle royale, so don't expect to see huge open-world maps with lots of things to see and do. The maps are quite small in comparison to other games, such as Escape from Tarkov or Apex Legends. 

That said, the good thing about having smaller maps is the fact that you will encounter more enemies while you're roaming around, scrounging for loot. Unlike the now-dead Highguard video game, you won't be running around a huge map wondering where all of the enemies are!

One thing that might disappoint some gamers is that Marathon is strictly both a PvP and a PvE video game. This means most of the time you will be facing up against AI enemies as well as real players. You cannot choose one or the other, which is a shame. 

Speaking of the AI, there isn't really any difficulty setting for them for casual gamers to ease themselves into the game. The AI is relentless and can kill you instantly if you cannot find enough shield or health upgrades to replenish yourself. 

Not to mention, the game is brutal to play solo because you only have one life and cannot revive yourself. Once you are dead, the run is over, and you have to start from the beginning all over again. The game is better to play as a team so that a team member can revive you if you go down. 

Another thing that might annoy some casual gamers is that Marathon is a hardcore-style of extraction shooter. Extraction shooters, in general, are frustrating because if you find cool guns or loot, you will lose them forever when you die. Some upgrades are permanent, but most items are gone upon death. 

Marathon is also a game that relies heavily on online servers. If the servers are down for maintenance or another reason, you won't be able to play the game whatsoever. The game will also be unplayable in the far future if Bungie ever decides to shut down the servers due to low player counts… 

Despite all the negative things I have to say about Marathon, I believe the gameplay and gun mechanics are excellent. If you liked the shooting in Destiny, Marathon has the same style of satisfying firefights. The guns are responsive, and it's easy to lock on to enemies. 

Each 'runner' in the game also has unique abilities depending on who you choose. This can include camouflage, double jumps, dashes, shields, electric shocks, and much more. The movement is also satisfying if you choose the right runner and abilities to utilise as well. 

Graphically, Marathon has a clean and futuristic aesthetic that fits its unworldly vibe. I remember my brother saying the game looks very bland, but I didn't mind the art style because it is unique. The game also runs at a buttery smooth 60fps on all platforms. 

While Marathon has great gameplay mechanics and unique graphics, the lack of content at launch and the monthly fee for console players make it hard to recommend at its current state. 

This game might have been more worth it if it had a campaign or story like the older Marathon titles from the '90s. The game has the potential to improve in the future, but right now it's a game for hardcore fans only.

Verdict: 6.5/10