After nearly a year of cryptic teasers and one of the most elaborate ARGs in recent gaming memory, Bungie is finally ready to lift the curtain on Marathon, its upcoming sci-fi PvP extraction shooter. The first-ever gameplay reveal is scheduled for Saturday, April 12, 2025, at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET / 6 PM BST, and fans can tune in live via Marathon’s official Twitch, YouTube, or TikTok channels.
This showcase promises to be the biggest update yet on the game, which has remained largely under wraps since its announcement.
Bungie has announced that a full gameplay reveal for their upcoming extraction shooter, Marathon, will take place this Saturday, April 12th at 10 am PDT / 1 pm EDT / 6 pm BST.
What Is Marathon?
Originally a cult-classic FPS released in 1994 for the Mac, Marathon helped establish Bungie’s early legacy long before Halo and Destiny. This new iteration, however, is not a traditional reboot. Instead, it’s a bold reimagining set within the same universe—transformed into a team-based, extraction-style shooter with PvP and dynamic narrative elements.
In Marathon, players step into the role of Runners—cybernetically enhanced mercenaries who are dropped onto the planet Tau Ceti IV to retrieve alien artifacts, lost tech, and rival faction secrets. But this isn’t a straightforward mission-based game. The world evolves over time, and the lore is shaped by player decisions, discoveries, and faction interactions—much like a persistent MMO-lite storytelling format.
Bungie’s Immersive ARG Leads to This Moment
The lead-up to the reveal has been anything but conventional. Bungie launched an Alternate Reality Game (ARG) that spanned multiple weeks, requiring the global community to solve complex puzzles, decode hidden transmissions, and piece together clues across real-world and digital spaces.
This community-led effort culminated in the unlocking of the showcase date—a marketing strategy that echoes Bungie’s love for layered, player-driven storytelling, a hallmark seen in Destiny’s seasonal mysteries and lore drops.
What We Expect to See at the Reveal
While gameplay specifics have been scarce, the showcase will likely highlight:
- First-person combat mechanics with extraction-based objectives
- Team loadouts, Runner customization, and abilities
- A look at the persistent world of Tau Ceti IV
- Potential insights into how narrative progression works in a PvP environment
- Bungie’s vision for cross-platform play and live service updates
The game will reportedly run on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, with full cross-play and cross-save planned from launch. Bungie has emphasized that this isn’t just a Destiny-reskin—expect a different tone, rhythm, and style of engagement tailored to the extraction shooter genre.
The Road Ahead
There’s no confirmed release date yet, but Bungie’s focus on polishing Marathon suggests a late 2025 or early 2026 window is possible. With the studio now part of Sony Interactive Entertainment, this marks their first major new IP since Destiny, and anticipation is high.
For fans of sci-fi shooters, Bungie’s return to the Marathon universe isn’t just a nostalgic callback—it’s a potential shake-up in a genre dominated by Escape from Tarkov, The Cycle: Frontier, and DMZ-style experiences. If done right, Marathon could carve out a unique space of its own.
The countdown has begun. April 12 could be the start of something big.
