Marathon alpha feedback 16th May (1pm PT // 4pm ET // 9pm UK)
- Thread starter cormack12
- Start date
HeisenbergFX4
Member
I expect a delay incoming
RagnarokIV
Battlebus imprisoning me \m/ >.< \m/
i got your feedback right here
Hideous Snake
Gold Member
Delay incoming. Idiots had thousands of people wanting to play but they decided to not invite them
Kacho
Member
Probably. Modern dev studios love them some toxic positivity. "We believe in our vision. Our team is thrilled about what we accomplished. Etc. Etc."
Moridianae
Member
Probably a massive delay to "polish" but really is because reception to it was basically ice cold.
Betas like these are also marketing events. No dev studio - past and present - was ever going to go "our upcoming game was shit" ahead of release.
StreetsofBeige
Member
They already had a laundry list of fixes. So it may be a verbal rehash of what they already said. Unless they want to stream actual footage of improvements in the works not in the alpha.
Killjoy-NL
Member
It wasn't a beta though.
It was a closed alpha that was initially planned to be under NDA.
balls of snow
Member
That Arc Raiders tech test in the same week was a masterclass.
Black_Stride
do not tempt fate do not contrain Wonder Woman's thighs do not do not
Tell us how much it costs.
HeisenbergFX4
Member
This one was not intended as a marketing event, it was supposed to be a true closed alpha under NDA
Not sure why they ditched the NDA unless its been mentioned and I just missed it
Killjoy-NL
Member
Supposedly they got a bit nervous after the mixed reaction to the reveal and people complaining about the NDA.
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StreetsofBeige
Member
They probably opened it up because they needed as many gamers playing it.
If it was just for streamers they thought it'd get grilled too much. But if they opened it up for everyone the general gamer dude would like it more than YTers. Tough choice since it's a team based shooter and they opened it up with no friend invites so it'd be people mostly playing with randoms in small teams which isn't ideal.
Other games with team based gameplay can get away with it easier with bigger teams to carry the load or it's a mode where people can lone wolf it easier.
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Killjoy-NL
Member
They didn't open it up. Where do people come up with these weird takes?
All that happened was Bungie lifting the NDA so participants of the closed alpha were allowed to stream and upload gameplay footage and discuss the closed alpha in public.
Doesn't matter, does it? As long as media was made public, streams were allowed to be broadcast and the game in general was viewable by the public, it became a marketing event, as well as the tech test, of course.
And as such, they'll have to put a positive spin on any public facing commentary they release about the alpha.
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HeisenbergFX4
Member
Very true in the end it didn't matter since they let streamers play it live which felt like a knee jerk reaction
If they don't delay it and ARC Raiders is anywhere close to the same launch window Marathon will struggle to keep an audience as I doubt many will play both
Maybe Marathon has a massive trick up its sleeve yet to show
Mibu no ookami
Banned
I expect a delay, but a release before March 31st, 2026, since it was still mentioned in the earnings report.
That being said, a 6-month delay puts it at March 23rd.
That being said, a 6-month delay puts it at March 23rd.
Klosshufvud
Member
Excuse me sir, the politically correct term is "vaulting".
BennyBlanco
aka IMurRIVAL69
If this isn't f2p it's gonna be a huge flop.
StreetsofBeige
Member
Exactly.
The game was already losing interest among gamers, so they needed the NDA lifted so they could get as many people as possible talking about the game. And the hope was it would be positive. But in general it was very hit and miss and hardly anyone even bothered playing it. No wonder they needed as much exposure as possible.
The Steam count dropped so fast after day one's 7,000 peak, it right away dropped to a couple thousand. Then at the end just a few hundred. Gamers immediately lost interest because it's not a good game. Now if it was a special COD, Destiny, Apex whatever playtest you'd get maxed out gamer count all week.
Steam count was actually even under 100 gamers at times. Theres going to be more people playing some random $5 solitaire or indie game than the Marathon alpha.
MiguelItUp
Member
At this point I'm just really curious to see what their next move is. The game itself, from everything I've seen, just doesn't interest me at all. Which says a lot, because honestly, it really should, and it's beyond clear that I'm not alone in that. I still can't believe that they launched a test and people dropped off of that when they should be wanting the opposite. Eeeeeesh.
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kevboard
Member
StreetsofBeige
Member
In general, I think the main points I've seen about the game from people are:
Good
- Gun play
- Net code
- Seems pretty polished
Bad
- Graphics. Doesnt look anything like those fancy promo pics. And the backgrounds have a low res hazy look to it
- Boring
- UI or inventory screens looks cheap
- AI bots too hard
- No prox chat
- No solo queue lobbies
- Already done before in other extraction games. Looks different with sci-fi, but samey gameplay
All the bad points can be fixed with some tweaks except the "boring" part which would require overhauling the objectives and/or AI and human enemy encounters
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ChorizoPicozo
Member
Men_in_Boxes
appreciates your contribution.
MiguelItUp
Member
Yeah, and honestly that's the thing I've seen, heard, and read the most. It's just "boring" or has a "been there done that" feel, like it brings nothing new to the table that isn't and hasn't been out there for awhile. That is pretty damning. Things could certainly change in due time, but if they don't delay it and they launch it this year I fear it will not work out for them at all.
StreetsofBeige
Member
I'm not an extraction gamer, but if I had a to play one I'd choose Hunt or ARC because the atmosphere is more gritty. That's part of the allure of the extraction genre. One part shooter, explorer and suspense all wrapped up in one package.
Let's face it. With neon coloured walls in a very clean looking sci-fi setting, right away a lot of that danger feeling is gone. The game actually looks closer to Mirrors Edge than a typical shooter.
From there, it'll be a slog convincing the masses an extraction genre game is big enough to try it, and convincing the hardcore extraction gamers to try it out though it's been heavily casualized and safe with no random prox chat trolling. Oh, I forgot about the heavy aim assist too that was a bad point. So thats another casualized thing they added (but I believe they retracted it).
We all know what Bungie is trying to do. Make a different game than Destiny, and in order to get tons of gamers you got to make it casual. The more hardcore, the fewer gamers. But they are doing it in a genre whose core audience is pretty hardcore already. So Bungie thinks there is a big untapped market if they break away from Hunt and ARC.
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cormack12
Gold Member
That's sort of where I am. This genre's not for me, whether it's arc or marathon, I'll still be just waiting for BF tbh. I'm more interested in what comes next from Bungie.
Just like I watched the drama of BF2042 unfold as well.
I don't think in isolation, GAF or Era etc. are a bellwether for a game's success but in tandem with the reception generally (not streamers etc.) it doesn't look good. However I've tried to not constantly spam the same stuff because it can be annoying in every thread for those looking forward to it.
In memoriam.
Mibu no ookami
Banned
I think they need to take a totally different approach with the art direction. And they should consider what makes this Marathon in the first place in that decision.
They decided to make a Marathon game that isn't a Marathon game. I defended that decision with Until Dawn the movie, but this is really different. There have been 3 Marathon games. It has an aesthetic.
And it's a stretch, but if they take 12 more months, they should also try to put together a short campaign based on the original game's story.
This looks 1000x more interesting than what they showed us.
ozz ex machina
Member
A trilogy of games that quickly came and went in the mid 90s. Dear lord who gives a fuck about that? I understand not liking current art style, it's also weird to use the same IP. But NOBODY can care about those two points really.
Also lol at wanting a campaign. Get with the times gramps!
Mibu no ookami
Banned
That's like saying who cares about Top Gun, why make Top Gun Maverick.
If they care enough to use the name, they should care enough to stay consistent with the franchise.
Campaigns bring people in who otherwise wouldn't buy it. Not saying it shouldn't be a live service game, but I think selling this as a premium live service game with no campaign is a recipe for disaster.
And Halo is basically just an extension of Marathon. It's like saying Halo games shouldn't get campaigns anymore.
ozz ex machina
Member
It's not because millions of people know, love and still play halo. Comparing Marathan to Halo as an IP is just insane lol.
I don't think you realise how niche those games are these days. Like why are you comparing a massively popular film to Marathon? Do you live in a weird echochamber where everyone still goes back and plays marathon and loves marathon? I said I agree it's weird they chose to re-use the IP - but I can only assume it was to help get the project greenlit in the first place because everyone is so scared of new IP.
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Mibu no ookami
Banned
Because I'm trying to point out the faultiness of your logic.
I'm not saying that Marathon itself has any intrinsic value, but a sci-fi shooter campaign made by Bungie with a main character who is almost exactly like Master Chief? Yeah.. that has value. Marathon could easily be alt-brand Halo.
Do you realize what Call of Duty started off as? Or Star Ocean? Or Hot Shots Golf?
Not sure how that helps greenlight the project if it isn't at all related to the IP. Think about your logic there.
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mayham2199
Member
Arcraiders isn't F2P and people are really high on that game. I think people over estimate how necessary F2P is for a game. HD2 already showed us not everything has to be F2P if it's a good game and fun people will buy it especially to play with their friends.
ozz ex machina
Member
Honestly for an extraction shooter - it's quite appealing it's not F2P. I think it's better for the health of the game because the developers shouldn't feel forced to implement pay to win mechanics as much.
Guardian Monkey
Member
It will be fine.
mayham2199
Member
Agreed. Plus it's only $40 so it's not like a full priced game. I think $40 is fine to charge people and IMO it makes people give the game an actual chance instead of just dumping it in the first 10 mins if they aren't immediately captivated. Which can happen in a extraction shooter where you might not run into people even run.