Bungie to Reveal Marathon Gameplay in Upcoming Livestream

Bungie, the developer behind Destiny, is gearing up to showcase more of its highly anticipated PvP extraction shooter, Marathon, with an exciting gameplay livestream scheduled for this Saturday, April 12 (or Sunday, April 13, depending on your global location). This event follows a cryptic tweet from Bungie last week, featuring a 15-second video that sparked an intense "alternative reality game" among fans, leading to a thrilling community effort to uncover hidden clues.

Within the ASCII art of the video, eagle-eyed players spotted "a snippet of footage from the initial trailer," specifically "the runner sprinting down a hall." Further intrigue was added with a message: "WHEN WILL HE RETURN ERROR ERROR ERROR HAS OCCURRED THE ENEMY RETURNED SYSTEM WARNING: PROTOCOL BREACH EVACUATE THE BASE IMMEDIATELY ALL UNITS REPORT TO STATION INITIATE EMERGENCY PROTOCOL 7 DATA LOSS IMMINENT GOOD LUCK, COMMANDER." This sparked widespread collaboration among thousands of community members worldwide, culminating in the announcement of the gameplay reveal date.

The livestream is set to kick off at 10 am PDT (San Francisco) / 1 pm EDT (New York) / 6 pm BST (London) / 7 pm CEST (Berlin/Paris) / 9 pm GST (Dubai) on Saturday, April 12, or Sunday, April 13 at 2 am JST (Tokyo) / 3 am AEST (Sydney) / 5 pm NZST (Auckland).

Marathon, revealed in May 2023, represents a reboot of the classic Bungie franchise, embracing themes of "mysteries, eeriness, and psychological creepiness." The game is set on the enigmatic planet of Tau Ceti IV, where players assume the roles of Runners—cybernetic mercenaries engineered to withstand the planet's harsh conditions. As they explore a lost colony on the surface, players will hunt for valuable loot, including new weapons and gear. Since its initial reveal, updates have been scarce, with a development video in October providing insights into the game's mechanics, though Bungie emphasized the project's early stages.

In the backdrop of Marathon's development, the gaming industry has seen significant shifts. Sony, following the abrupt cancellation of the live-service shooter Concord, has recalibrated its focus on live-service games. In November 2023, Sony president Hiroki Totoki announced plans to launch just six of the 12 live-service games initially planned by March 2026, signaling the cancellation of projects like The Last of Us multiplayer game.

Bungie itself has faced its share of challenges. The company underwent significant layoffs, cutting 220 staff members—17% of its workforce—in July 2024, following 100 other layoffs less than a year earlier. Additionally, controversy surrounded the departure of former Marathon director Chris Barrett, who was allegedly fired after an internal misconduct investigation and subsequently sued Sony Interactive Entertainment and Bungie for over $200 million.

To catch the Marathon gameplay reveal live, tune into the official Marathon Twitch channel on April 12.