Bungie Delays Marathon’s Release Date Indefinitely

Marathon will no longer be released on September 23, as originally intended. Bungie announced the game’s delay on June 17, but no updated release date was provided. The decision to delay the game’s release was impacted heavily by player feedback from the Alpha playtest. 

“We know we need more time to craft Marathon into the game that truly reflects your passion. After much discussion within our Dev team, we’ve made the decision to delay the September 23rd release,” Bungie stated in an update blog. 

The development team communicated areas of planned improvement, according to the official blog update: 

• Upping the Survival Game
  • More challenging and engaging AI encounters
  • More rewarding runs, with new types of loot and dynamic events
  • Making combat more tense and strategic
• Doubling down on the Marathon Universe
  • Increased visual fidelity
  • More narrative and environmental storytelling to discover and interact with
  • A darker tone that delivers on the themes of the original trilogy
• Adding more social experiences
  • A better player experience for solo/duos
  • Prox chat, so social stories can come to life

Playtesting is expected to continue as Bungie works on improving the game. A new release date is expected to be revealed during the Fall of 2025, when it will launch on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox One. Closed testing will continue over the next few months. 

During its marketing for Marathon, Bungie fell into hot water for plagiarism accusations after it lifted assets from artist N2. The company publicly apologized and acknowledged the matter.