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Marathon Server Slam CCU Watch

If marathon is lucky it will end up with "Hunt - Showdown" numbers. Not a hit but not a flop either. Difference is that Hunt doesn't have to keep a giant studio alive that was bought for over 3 billion because the overlords thought it would print money.
If I was a developer at Bungie right now I'd at least make sure my LinkedIn profile was up to date.
It's just a shame in today's world being just okay isn't usually enough. Back during the PS2/3 era just okay could have been very viable.
 
After the second day, numbers seems low for a new Bungie release and probably disappointing for Sony/Bungie. But, overall, looks like it'll not be a complete failure all around, going to stay for a bit in the middle/low range of GAAS.
 
Is there any exclusive reward or cosmetic for playing the beta and progressing to a certain point?
Yes. One for playing it, other one for reaching level 10 (I'm level 12 and I'm not a FPS or PvP guy) and another one for reaching level 30. But other than this, the progress will be reseted.

After the second day, numbers seems low for a new Bungie release and probably disappointing for Sony/Bungie. But, overall, looks like it'll not be a complete failure all around, going to stay for a bit in the middle/low range of GAAS.
What I see in the numbers is what I already thought: since its target a smaller more hardcore PvP subset of players, will sell less than Destiny 2, Helldivers 2 or Arc Raiders (more mainstream PvE focused). Something I assume Sony and Bungie expect.

But other than this, I think will be successful. Won't be a Condord 2.0/3.0 at all as many people wish and pray to be the case.

Regarding how its potential sales are going to be vs previous Bungie games, it needs to sell around 4.5M units (or a bit more) in the first month to be Bungie's fastest selling game ever. I think it's difficult, and that will likely sell less than that, but I see it as possible.
 
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After the second day, numbers seems low for a new Bungie release and probably disappointing for Sony/Bungie. But, overall, looks like it'll not be a complete failure all around, going to stay for a bit in the middle/low range of GAAS.
We aren't talking about a low budget game either a long ass development time and significant delays, anyone thinking this is ok are seriously kidding themselves.

The launch is a don't hold your breath moment for Bungie and they need to at least hold a decent amount of players over the next 6 months to keep Sony happy I feel but that looks unlikely given the awful word of mouth this is getting.
 
I feel bad. Marathon is already a hit but the drones don't realize it yet. It's like watching the bodies of chickens run after the head is severed. The derangement of the human mind...
 
New cope just dropped

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New cope just dropped

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Imagine how good RE9 will perform once players have left their bunkers. Marathon isn't bad, it's just too hardcore and niche for the kind of reception Bungie and Sony need to keep the lights on. If I'm Sony I'd wonder where the money went. It looks a generation behind much smaller, similar titles like The Finals. Embark whipped that up with a half a dozen dudes during an ARC Raiders break. If Marathon was a $20 Steam indie title, I think the hype would be positive.
 
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New cope just dropped

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The problem is that you enter Reddit, these guys will come with the most stupid ideas possible.



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Anyways, unless some miracle happens, this will be DoA.

And not only to the players, we already see it on BF6: if the numbers dont meet what they demanded, it doesnt matter that sells well, it goes to trash can.

Oh, and before anything, Bungie is just one more corpo now. The guys that made Halo and the original Marathon are long gone.
 
Imagine how good RE9 will perform once players have left their bunkers. Marathon isn't bad, it's just too hardcore and niche for the kind of reception Bungie and Sony need to keep the lights on. If I'm Sony I'd wonder where the money went. It looks a generation behind much smaller, similar titles like The Finals. Embark whipped that up with a half a dozen dudes during an ARC Raiders break. If Marathon was a $20 Steam indie title, I think the hype would be positive.

What you also have to keep in mind is that Capcom is a AAA company with a historic career in developing iconic series as well.


So it's unfair to compare them to....

<checks notes>

Bungie.
 
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I think blaming on RE9 holds no water at all. Sony could have changed dates if they though a potential strong game release could interfer with the beta(maybe just give it 2 weeks to wait or just release it sooner). I think the same thing happened with Sega when they released their Sonic racing game on a date waay to closer to another big release. By launching at same date either they are very confident or delibery obtuse.
 
I think blaming on RE9 holds no water at all. Sony could have changed dates if they though a potential strong game release could interfer with the beta(maybe just give it 2 weeks to wait or just release it sooner). I think the same thing happened with Sega when they released their Sonic racing game on a date waay to closer to another big release. By launching at same date either they are very confident or delibery obtuse.
I think nobody at Capcom or Sony expected RE Requiem to be that successful, but whoever at Sony decided to put Marathon's free weekend and Horizon Online first closed playtest the same weekend, and particularly one with a big release like RE Requiem may need to be fired

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New cope just dropped

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So a mid east war is a giant gaming factor. LOL. Who knew gaming came to a halt.

On a Sunday afternoon (EST), ARC is at its highest CCU since Tuesday. CS2, Deadlock, Helldivers 2 and PUBG are at its highest since last weekend.

I guess none of these gamers know the Iran leader is dead and there's missiles being shot all over the past 36 hours.
 
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The expectations were for Marathon to be one of the 5 biggest games of the year

Safe to say it already failed

Have a hard time believing this.
The problem is that you enter Reddit, these guys will come with the most stupid ideas possible.



-----------


Anyways, unless some miracle happens, this will be DoA.

And not only to the players, we already see it on BF6: if the numbers dont meet what they demanded, it doesnt matter that sells well, it goes to trash can.

Oh, and before anything, Bungie is just one more corpo now. The guys that made Halo and the original Marathon are long gone.
What are you talking about with bf6? It's not in the trash can.
 


Oh boy, oh boy. This game was delayed a year and they are still going to launch a beta.🤦.. Marathon is not peak, is not aura farming, it's just.... BETA. 6/10.

Now, how bad the numbers are going to be at launch?😬

I think the core loop and gameplay is solid, it's engaging if you are more about exploring and casually engaging in confrontations. Playing solo is a chill experience. I "exfil" quite consistently. It Just that is bare bones.

I don't think Bungie and Sony have the bandwidth and patience to sustain MIDARATHON for a year until addressed all the criticisms
 
Nope. This is the real deal.

I've only given out 3 Nintendo Seal of Quality awards in the last three years. They do not give those out to anybody.

Helldivers 2, ARC Raiders, and now Marathon.
Which one out of these 3 would you say is the best?

Also what do you think about the 'Marathon is too obtuse for casuals'.
 


Oh boy, oh boy. This game was delayed a year and they are still going to launch a beta.🤦.. Marathon is not peak, is not aura farming, it's just.... BETA. 6/10.

Now, how bad the numbers are going to be at launch?😬

I think the core loop and gameplay is solid, it's engaging if you are more about exploring and casually engaging in confrontations. Playing solo is a chill experience. I "exfil" quite consistently. It Just that is bare bones.

I don't think Bungie and Sony have the bandwidth and patience to sustain MIDARATHON for a year until addressed all the criticisms

This game's best feature to retain gamers IMO is the bold sci fi art work. It can be a mid game, but if someone loves the sci fi look, they'll stick with it than playing a brown military boots shooter or a bright a cartoony Fortnite.
 
I think nobody at Capcom or Sony expected RE Requiem to be that successful, but whoever at Sony decided to put Marathon's free weekend and Horizon Online first closed playtest the same weekend, and particularly one with a big release like RE Requiem may need to be fired

Screenshot-2026-02-28-15-56-21-325-edit-com-android-chrome.jpg
resident evil 6 has more player than 1 4 and 5

Kill Me Goodbye GIF by Film Riot
 
This game's best feature to retain gamers IMO is the bold sci fi art work. It can be a mid game, but if someone loves the sci fi look, they'll stick with it than playing a brown military boots shooter or a bright a cartoony Fortnite.
🤔.. Retention will come down to how deep the game is. The sci-fi look is superficial, that's what pulls people in initially.... Which is not a good sign for the final release, given its visual identity has been quite controversial.

I think people invested in the game will engage with its sci-fi narrative too, even if it has poor presentation.
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It's like this one. It had a striking art direction. But its juvenile narrative and all the BS around the game and its monetization have hurt its performance.

Bungie has faced similar criticism with Destiny 2 (aggressive monetization among other things)... I wonder how much Bungie's reputation will hurt Marathon's missteps. People (the actual player base) could be more critical and less forgiving.

It's so insane that it is a real possibility that Bungie could experience a "Concord" (the game dying in less than a year).
 
This is a weird one man. On one hand, it doesn't bring anything new to the genre mechanics wise, but it has that bungie layer of atmosphere and lore that pulls you in. Plus, they really pushed it in a different way aesthetically that, while polarizing, will definitely hook a particular kind of gamer. Add that it's an FPS and you'll have ppl that just don't the 3rd person perspective of Arc Raiders give it a try. I was all about writing it off at first, but I think I'm going to buy after the server slam.
 
🤔.. Retention will come down to how deep the game is. The sci-fi look is superficial, that's what pulls people in initially.... Which is not a good sign for the final release, given its visual identity has been quite controversial.

I think people invested in the game will engage with its sci-fi narrative too, even if it has poor presentation.
fkLE3i1zA3IWOHjL.png

It's like this one. It had a striking art direction. But its juvenile narrative and all the BS around the game and its monetization have hurt its performance.

Bungie has faced similar criticism with Destiny 2 (aggressive monetization among other things)... I wonder how much Bungie's reputation will hurt Marathon's missteps. People (the actual player base) could be more critical and less forgiving.

It's so insane that it is a real possibility that Bungie could experience a "Concord" (the game dying in less than a year).
But this game targets a specific demographic and is able to sell a ton of skins to that demo, who's going to buy Marathon skins?
 
Pretty clear now that the drop was bad but the retention is kinda strong for a limited audience. Room to grow maybe.

It's literally a UI update away from being a genuinely good game.
 
Pretty clear now that the drop was bad but the retention is kinda strong for a limited audience. Room to grow maybe.

It's literally a UI update away from being a genuinely good game.

The drama around Marathon feels contrived. I doubt anybody would care if Bungie and Sony weren't involved. Upset Destiny players and the console war angle have overshadowed any real discussion. I didn't care for the game but I could see it doing an average CCU on PC of 20k-40k. Marathon is different enough from Tarkov, Arc, and the Hunt to carve out its own niche and the game itself plays fine (UI aside). Whether or not that sort of player count is enough to satisfy Sony's investment is another story entirely. A reasonably successful game can sustain and indie dev while being a catastrophic failure for a massive AAA studio.
 
Pretty clear now that the drop was bad but the retention is kinda strong for a limited audience. Room to grow maybe.

It's literally a UI update away from being a genuinely good game.
Bungie still has elite branding in gaming. Gamers that would never play a hardcore extraction shooter gave it a try. It's why the drop off was pretty severe the first couple days. It also does not help that the on-boarding is absolutely brutal

On Thursday, Marathon went from 5th to 25th on the Steam top sellers. Now it is 4th. Really good word the past couple days of people playing it more than few hours. The game has the potential to big with the right updates
 
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Bungie still has elite branding in gaming. Gamers that would never play a hardcore extraction shooter gave it a try. It's why the drop off was pretty severe the first couple days. It also does not help that the on-boarding is absolutely brutal

On Thursday, Marathon went from 5th to 25th on the Steam top sellers. Now it is 4th. Really good word the past couple days of people playing it more than few hours. The game has the potential to big with the right updates

It has a little something I can't put my finger on. I just want to spend time in this world.

I'm probably a buy after I complete a couple others I'm playing.
 
The drama around Marathon feels contrived. I doubt anybody would care if Bungie and Sony weren't involved. Upset Destiny players and the console war angle have overshadowed any real discussion. I didn't care for the game but I could see it doing an average CCU on PC of 20k-40k. Marathon is different enough from Tarkov, Arc, and the Hunt to carve out its own niche and the game itself plays fine (UI aside). Whether or not that sort of player count is enough to satisfy Sony's investment is another story entirely. A reasonably successful game can sustain and indie dev while being a catastrophic failure for a massive AAA studio.
Agreed, this is pretty much riding on whether or not Sony deems it successful enough to continue supporting it.
 
Which one out of these 3 would you say is the best?
ARC Raiders has the best sandbox & highest ceiling but it's missing loot & an end game which are both vital to the genre. Marathon has all the ingredients and feels AAA, but a more limited sandbox. Helldivers 2 is the runt.

It's really just 1998 all over again. Ocarina of Time or Metal Gear Solid? The answer was MGS but there's no real loser here.
Also what do you think about the 'Marathon is too obtuse for casuals'.
"Casuals" is too vague.

I'd recommend it to anyone who's played a lot of competitive FPS games over the last few years. It's really not much more complex than Apex Legends if you can work through the first few hours. It really does "click" at a certain point.
 
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