Marathon goes free for a week as Bungie launches Season 2: Nightfall
Marathon is getting a free trial week starting June 2, timed to the launch of Season 2: Nightfall — Bungie's clearest attempt yet to rebuild an audience after a rough first season. The game peaked at roughly 80,000 concurrent players on Steam at its March 2026 launch, then slid to around 10,000–15,000, per Kotaku. Sony, which acquired Bungie for $3.6 billion, has since taken a $765 million impairment loss tied in part to Marathon's underperformance.
The free week
From June 2 to June 9, Marathon is playable at no cost on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Steam. No PlayStation Plus subscription is required on PS5. If you decide to keep playing after the trial, your progression carries over when you buy the full game — currently priced at $39.99. That price had been repeatedly flagged by players and reviewers as a barrier to trying an extraction shooter that hadn't yet proven itself, per Bungie Press Room.
The season reset
The timing is deliberate. Season 2 resets all player progression, stripping the gear and advantages accumulated by Season 1 veterans. Cosmetics and achievements are kept, but everyone starts the new season on roughly equal footing. Bungie described the logic plainly: new players shouldn't log in for the first time and immediately run into fully-kitted squads with months of experience.
What's new in Nightfall
Season 2 adds the Dire Marsh (Night) location — a large new map — alongside the Sentinel Runner shell (a new playable character class), two new weapons (the KKV-9SD SMG and D54 Battle Pistol), and a revamped progression system called The Cradle, which lets players customize their shell's stats. Faction progression is also faster this season, and Bungie promises a slate of quality-of-life improvements.
The bigger picture
The free week is a straightforward attempt to convert curious players who passed at launch. Whether it works depends on whether the game can retain them past June 9. With Sony already absorbing a nine-figure loss on the Bungie acquisition, Season 2 is carrying significant financial weight alongside its new map and weapons.