A symphony of death: Marathon review

Marathon is a PvPvE extraction shooter by Bungie that revives the legendary series and takes players to an abandoned colony full of secrets. In the role of mercenaries, you will have to carry out orders for corporations, find valuable resources, and, of course, kill other players. However, you need to remember that death means the loss of absolutely everything you took with you on the raid. This is what raises the stakes, makes your heart race, and makes you think about every step that will lead to an epic victory or a meaningless defeat. And the gg editorial team couldn't pass by such a sci-fi story and decided to find out what happened to Marathon.

4 reasons to buy Marathon

• Dynamic and juicy shooting is always a pleasure
• The game is more accessible than many other extraction shooters, which lowers the entry threshold
• The visual style of graphic realism makes the game stand out in a crowded market
• Rich maps encourage exploration and risky decisions

2 reasons not to buy Marathon

• It is very difficult for your eyes to perceive too bright visuals
• You are not ready to die dozens of times in a row to reach the goal in the game

Quick transition:

• Plot: how AI and aliens destroyed a space colony
• Gameplay: death is only the first step
• Endgame - what keeps Marathon from getting boring
• The technical side of the colony
• What's next for Marathon?
• Five things you need to know about Marathon

Plot: how AI and aliens destroyed a space colony

Marathon (2026) takes place on Tau Ceti IV, a once thriving human colony that mysteriously fell silent, leaving only an abandoned ghost ship in orbit and a planet dotted with traces of extinct life. Megacorporations have begun sending cybernetic "runners" - synthetic shells where human consciousness has been transferred. They dive into the sectors of the dead colony, exploring ruined homes, buried research facilities and devastated industrial zones in search of any clues to the fate of the 30,000 missing colonists. The overall storyline is built around this disappearance and the unsettling feeling that someone - or something - is still watching from the shadows of Tau Kita's abandoned infrastructure.

The plot develops thanks to the already mentioned corporations. Each of them offers a series of tasks in accordance with its direction. Anarchists from MIDA will ask you to break windows on the planet. The death cult Arachne will force you to kill as many runners as possible. And the agro-cultural NuCaloric will be sent to find data that will reveal the details of the colonists' life. Through these quests, the history of Marathon appears as a web of conflicting testimonies, edited records, and half-truths that players must piece together.

The environment is also an important element of the story. If you look closely at the world of Marathon, you will notice multilayered details: abandoned warnings, distorted monologues, and makeshift altars left by colonists in their last days. They gradually turn individual contracts into a coherent story about corporate negligence, artificial intelligence out of control, and alien intervention.

Thanks to all this, Marathon is an extraction shooter with perhaps the most interesting story among the representatives of the genre. Bungie knows how to create a rich lore, and the legacy of the previous games in the series allows us to further develop this dark sci-fi adventure.

Gameplay: death is only the first step

Marathon's gameplay is built around a clear, repeatable evacuation cycle that quickly becomes addictive. You start each race with preparation: collecting equipment, setting up your runner's gear, and choosing a sector to land in. After that, each match turns into a race against time, other squads, PvE threats, and changing map conditions. You move deeper in search of trophies, objectives, and a safe exit.

The maps themselves are built with clear corridors, vertical routes, and hidden areas where risk is accompanied by reward. You will move through industrial corridors, open areas, and spooky research zones.

At the time of writing, there are 4 maps in the game. Each of them offers a different experience.

• Perimeter is a classic and is suitable for beginners and those who want a more relaxed gameplay.
• Dire Marsh is a map with many open spaces, verticality, and is focused on constant clashes with other people.
• Outpost - a map full of various secondary activities, secrets, confusing locations, and the greatest tension. It's hard to find such a dose of adrenaline that Outpost gives you in the first 5-10 runs in other games.
• And the last one is the Marathon ship itself, but more on that later.

Before choosing a card, you have to decide which runner you will play as. Each archetype has its own abilities and set of characteristics. And it is this diversity that makes the gameplay interesting.

• Destroyer is a classic "tank" that can put up shields and fire missiles.
• Assassin - can become invisible for ambushes.
• Triage is an indispensable medic in a team game.
• Vandal is an extremely fast heroine who can do a double jump.
• Recon - able to activate the analogue of "wall hack" to detect threats through walls.
• Thief - uses a cat hook (you can even cling to the sky) and a drone that steals things from enemies.
• And then there is Rook, who can be played solo and only with random equipment. This option is ideal for those who do not want to take any risks at all.

Forming a squad with complementary abilities adds an extra layer of strategy, allowing you to organise flank attacks, quick retreats or coordinated offensives that feel different in each match.

Firefights are the undisputed highlight of the game: weapons have very juicy sounds, a clear recoil pattern and bright hit indicators that make shots fun and easy to recognise. At some point, you just catch yourself thinking that you want to shoot forever in this game. That's how well Bungie has once again done with the shooting. Add to that the fact that there are now 28 types of weapons from pistols to sniper rifles. And you can also attach different modules to each gun. In addition to the standard collimator sights, there are modules that can, for example, create an explosive wave when you destroy a target. So there is always something to customise.

Combat is fast-paced and often deadly for one side, and the quick kill time rewards vigilance and good positioning, but still feels fair once you get the hang of the pace of the game. Coupled with the tension of carrying valuable loot, every firefight feels important, and victory always feels very satisfying.

Marathon is both a tough and surprisingly friendly game. As with any extraction game, you will often die, lose equipment, and return from failed missions empty-handed - but the fast progression at the beginning, clear mechanics, and relatively loyal introduction to the game make it one of the most accessible in the genre. Once you get past the first few hours and learn the nuances - how to route through the maps, when to evacuate, how to use your runner's toolkit - the gameplay becomes really addictive and hard to put down. The main drawback is the interface, which is not always intuitive, sometimes hiding useful information or making navigation more inconvenient than necessary, but the overall gaming experience is so strong that this point does not spoil the overall picture too much.

Endgame is what keeps Marathon from getting boring

A common problem with online games is that after reaching a certain stage, it simply gets boring. Players simply have no choice but to run on the same maps with the same conditions. To avoid this, developers need to think about endgame content that can bring fresh impressions even after hundreds of hours. And Bungie knew what to do. To do this, Marathon unlocks new content after you reach level 25. This is a new map and mode that will test how well you have learnt your lessons.

Cryo Archive map for the best players

Cryo Archive is one of the most interesting and challenging places in Marathon, and it's this combination that makes you want to go there again and again. Set on board the abandoned UESC Marathon, it resembles a locked vault of secrets with interconnected complexes, a central hub, and high-security areas that immediately raise the level of tension as soon as you enter. You'll have to solve puzzles, fight your way through a crowd of strong enemies and other runners, and the strongest players will face a boss fight. If you manage to cope with all this, you will get ultra rare and expensive items.

Just keep in mind that the map becomes available only on certain days (usually weekends), so you have to prepare for it carefully and then try to pass the most difficult challenges.

Ranked to dominate others

Ranked mode is also available only on certain days and takes place on different maps (except for Cryo Archive). To enter the ranked mode, you must purchase a special pass in the game store. It can be purchased only with credits that are in the game, no one will ask for real money. After that, you collect equipment for a certain amount, which determines which division you will get into. To get a higher rating, you need to evacuate with an amount higher than you started the race. If you finish the race alive, but with the same amount, your rating will not change. However, a loss will result in a loss of points.

Thanks to this, even when you have completed all the quests and unlocked everything possible, the game has two tricks up its sleeve. If you want a competitive spirit, prove that you are the best runner in the rankings. You want brand new content - welcome to the Cryo Archive.

The technical side of the colony

Marathon is in perfect order with optimisation. I haven't encountered a single critical bug during my time on PlayStation 5, and the game has never crashed. I also didn't notice any of the usual problems of service games, such as losing packets or not counting shots.

Visuals you will love or hate

I'm not a big fan of online games, especially extraction, but as soon as I saw the game's trailer for the first time, I immediately fell in love with the graphical realism.

Marathon's visual identity is an incredible combination of harsh science fiction realism and bold design, creating an image that seems both realistic and surreal. Neon shades of green, bright pinks and deep blues are superimposed on shabby metal surfaces, making every shot seem like something new, not just another mundane military shooter.

Some will say that this is Roblox 2.0. For some, it is physically difficult to perceive such bright colours, but in all the years I have been following the industry, Marathon is definitely among my top ten favourite visual styles among games. Still, it's worth appreciating when developers try to create something new instead of repeating a familiar formula.

I'd like to see more of these bold decisions in visuals like Bungie did. Here are the screenshots: Bungie

Audio that does not go out of your head

The sound design of Marathon further enhances the atmosphere. The game combines modern electronic music with mysterious, textured sounds that emphasise the tension on the planet Tau Ceti IV. The soundtrack is dominated by synthesisers, distorted motifs, and changing ambient layers that rise and fall. The melodies themselves are often associated more with places and moments than with individual characters, which reinforces the feeling that the world itself is the real "protagonist" of the soundtrack.

The sound effects are mixed with surgical precision, making every shot, reload and distant sound seem immediate and clear without overwhelming the player. Weapon shots have a sharp, mechanical sound that contrasts with the more abstract humming, whirring, and interference that seeps in from the environment. Subtle details such as the echo of footsteps in spacious rooms, muffled signals, or the processed voices of drones and systems add to the sense of the world being alive. Therefore, you need to listen in the game all the time and believe me, this habit will reward you. I can't tell you how many times I've caught runners who opened a door nearby or decided to shoot at a bug nest. They heard a strange sound, figured out where it was coming from, found their target and took their belongings.

What's next for Marathon?

On the good side, I can't even believe that Bungie was able to rehabilitate itself after all the scandals and released a quality project. At the moment, Marathon is a game that I can safely recommend to both fans of the genre and those who will be trying extraction for the first time. But for a service game, the most important question is "what's next?". And we can only hope that Bungie and Sony will not let us down. Nowadays, the developers respond promptly to player feedback and try to improve the game every day. It's great to see that people actually hear you and are ready to improve your gaming experience, and not just pretend to see your comment on Reddit. New seasons, events, characters, maps, and lore expansions are in store for the game. At the moment, I see Marathon as a niche project that has gained a certain audience, and they will spend more than one year on the mysterious planet getting unforgettable impressions. So this time, although not without nuances, Sony managed to add a good service game to its portfolio. But honestly, I would really like to see a story-driven game with this style and in this universe.

Five things you need to know about Marathon

• Marathon is a new Bungie release for the first time since 2017
• You, in the role of cyber mercenaries, have to uncover the secrets of a missing colony
• The game expands the series of shooters of the 90s, but in the extraction shooter genre
• The project stands out for its visual style of graphic realism
• Get ready to die and kill a lot, but it's worth it

Marathon
Genre.	Extraction shooter
Platforms.	PC, Xbox Series, PlayStation 5
Number of players	Multiplayer (1-3)
Developer	Bungie
Publisher	PlayStation
Time to complete	∞ hours
Release date	5 March 2026

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