Marathon Offers a More Accessible Spin on a Traditionally Harsh Genre

As someone who has tried to convince friends to join me in extraction shooters, only to see too many folks fall away after their first or second loss, I’m all too familiar with how off-putting the genre can be. Death can come fast in this kind of game, and since you lose all the stuff you’re carrying if you can’t make it out alive, loss feels particularly demoralizing.

This is especially true with something like Escape from Tarkov, in which survival mechanics like thirst and specific health conditions like bone fractures are accounted for. But even in more casual takes on the genre like Call of Duty’s shortly lived “DMZ” mode from Modern Warfare 2 (2022), defeat often results in such an uphill battle in the next match that you’re usually too underequipped to be able to withstand even encounters with all but the most trivial AI, let alone fully equipped players. Many folks like this kind of a challenge, but it’s a niche crowd for sure.

But today’s gameplay reveal of Marathon shows perhaps the most casual and approachable take on the genre yet. As someone who deeply loves the thrill that comes with this kind of game, I’m hopeful Bungie’s take on this hardcore genre opens the door for more folks to enjoy its highs without getting too mired in the lows.

A class-based structure makes all the difference

As we learned from today’s gameplay reveal, players will select from one of six Runners at launch to jump into a map with. These sound very similar to classes in Destiny or even the abilities of characters in something like Apex Legends or Rainbow Six Siege. Today’s event showed off the four that will be playable during the game’s closed alpha period:

• Locus: A soldier-type character that’s “all about push-forward gameplay,” described during the stream as “the first one in” during combat scenarios.
• Blackbird: A “reconnaissance-based” Runner who focuses on spotting enemy threats for the team
• Glitch: An speedy “disruptor” who encourages fast, get-in, screw-with-enemies, get-out tactics
• Void: A stealthy Runner who can use smoke grenades and even go invisible with active camouflage

Players will be able to find various implants and “Cores” to spice up their Runners, but given the inherent traits of each runner, such as Glitch’s double jump and Locus’ deployable shields, it sounds like you’ll always be able to deploy into a match with a baseline of defensive and offensive capabilities. Another exciting ability is Blackbird’s Ultimate, as Gamesradar observed in their preview, which basically lets you interrogate a downed enemy to reveal their teammates’ positions.

But perhaps most importantly, these class dynamics provide a bit of a script that players should ideally follow during a match. See a Locus? You know that character likely has superior firepower. See a Void? You’ll know to expect some sneaky shenanigans. You’ll also know that those are the roles you’re expected to fill for your team, and you’ll be able to opt into that role at the start of the match, not after you’ve acquired the necessary gear to play as a tank, healer, or any other meta role. This establishes a clear expectation of what you should be doing during the match aside from just gathering loot and getting out alive.

It also means that you’ll spend less time scavenging things from the map for the sole purpose of being able to fill those roles after you’ve died. In extraction shooters in which you’re deprived of everything after death, it’s easy to get caught in a death spiral of being far too underequipped for subsequent matches. Writing for IGN, Travis Northup reflected on this in his preview of Marathon, wondering how that brutal feeling that “you’ll never catch a break” after repeat deaths and being deprived of useful loot will sit with folks who are new to the genre.

From my experience with the genre, Marathon sounds like it has a more manageable and capable baseline to fall back on after losing everything. Even though previews have stressed that the default starter kit of weapons isn’t terribly powerful, at least you won’t be deploying as a featureless, unarmored soldier bearing nothing but your bare fists if you’ve lost it all. You’ll have your Runner abilities and a sponsored loadout given to you before you jump into the next match.

While it’s clear Marathon will reward those players who stay alive the longest, being able to jump back in after dying with a set of useful abilities should make it way easier to dust yourself off and be of use to your team. Mix in the fact that the game features no survival mechanics like hunger or thirst, or an injury system that requires you to heal ailments to specific limbs, plus Bungie’s signature talents for creating shooters that feel responsive and satisfying to play, and Marathon might just be the extraction shooter’s chance to shine.

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