Marathon’s Server Slam felt like a distinctly odd outing for me. I jumped in with every expectation pushed aside, essentially starting fresh so I could dig into the details of Bungie’s upcoming extraction shooter—without any lingering doubts or hype getting in the way. After around 20 hours playing over the weekend, I’m ready to take my gloves off and say with confidence that Marathon delivers truly top-tier, high-end Bungie gunplay.
Still, I have to admit my first stretch with Marathon was inconsistent. I was immediately drawn to the arenas—the bold, high-contrast palettes spread across Marathon’s empty structures and wide-open stretches—but my momentum would stall as soon as I had to sort out my loadout. More than once, I found myself squinting like I was trying to read tiny labels on a faraway sign, attempting to figure out what each NuCaloric injectable “slime” was for, only to fumble through upgrading and then trying to properly equip it on my secondary weapon.
That said, I kept going—just like it seems a lot of other people did. After some time, you start noticing the small differences between items, which makes inventory management faster, and eventually you really start to feel it. Marathon clicks with you right away, though that instant won’t be identical for everyone. In my case, it arrived after I tangled with an Assassin in The Hauler.
His invisibility ability bent light as he sprinted down the middle corridor toward me, wrapped in a dark, lavender-tinted haze. I managed to bring him down with a panicked storm of fire from my assault rifle, and I sealed it with a knife to the chest—right when it mattered. That’s when I finally understood what Marathon is aiming for: a celebration of sci-fi brutality. Bungie’s history of building outstanding FPS weaponry—refined and sharpened across 30 years—boils down into a handful of thrilling seconds.
Marathon’s battles are quick, hard-hitting, and relentless. Ignore the naysayers: the time-to-kill feels spot-on. Shields collapse almost instantly with a satisfying snap, and catching someone off guard is practically a surefire way to drop them before they can even get their mic working to lob insults your way. The purest form of these adrenaline-filled encounters comes from one-on-one fights, and that’s why Marathon’s solo queue may be almost as appealing as running with full squads. Even in slower moments, the tempo still gets punctuated by sudden surges of action.
I also want to highlight the characters themselves. These “shells” bring their own combat, navigation, and disruption tools, giving personality to an already substantial FPS. The movement feels fluid and responsive, and you’re seldom standing still when you’re facing another player. Even when you choose a slower option like Destroyer, it still comes with air thrusters and a tactical sprint—so this aggressive shell can quickly seize an opening and chase down wounded players in tight spaces.
It reminds me of something, too—strangely enough, it feels close to Apex Legends, especially when you’re playing with two others and leaning on each character’s abilities to exploit weak spots in opposing squads. You won’t have ziplines or Jump Towers, of course, but as a player, your way of moving through and reading the environment carries a similar spirit to Respawn’s own sci-fi outing.
If Marathon has a real hidden ingredient, it’s without question the weapons themselves. I’m confident that longtime Bungie fans will recognize that instantly—as if they’d walked back into their childhood living rooms. The arsenal is packed with audio-visual showpieces that nod to familiar weapon categories, all pushed further by Marathon’s bold, overbearing style.
Take the V11 Punch, a fairly standard Volt-class weapon. It launches low-damage energy shots with a light pull, but if you keep it held for a few seconds, it releases a bigger, supercharged projectile. That charged shot uses ammo and can punch through enemy shields. Sound familiar? It’s reminiscent of the Halo energy pistol. The look may differ, but you still get that electric satisfaction from the charged shot, and the projectile travels through space in a very comparable way. When I first tested it, you would’ve had to hear my reaction. Marathon often sparks nostalgia through its weapons. The Longshot, the WSTR Combat Shotgun… they all echo some of Bungie’s most memorable and singular creations.
There are also small, well-judged details that add even more richness. When you drop a downed player, you get a flash of a digital skull, paired with a cybernetic sound that feels like a computer shutting down abruptly—together, it adds a memorable layer. And in a bleak sort of way, that’s exactly what you’ve been doing to these copies. The hit marker that delivers a satisfying twing when you land a headshot—little moments like that matter, and they meaningfully elevate the whole experience.
I kicked off the Server Slam on Sunday night at 8 PM, and before I realized it, it was already 1 AM. If Arc Raiders made you think extraction shooters are only about good energy and cooperation, then… I can’t see that being the case here. Not during my own sessions, at least. And it’s not because Marathon lacks ways to create more friendly, wholesome interactions—it’s just that taking out other players is way too much fun. You can’t hand someone a Bungie shotgun and expect them not to fire it.
When the game launches in a few days, I’d genuinely encourage you to stick with it. There’s a good chance Bungie’s best work is still waiting just beneath the surface in Marathon. And I’m excited to dig it up.