Marathon

boowomp

I really hate when there is an end date to an activity. There is no reason.

*Disclaimer:* I have 800+ hours on PS5. Couldn't write a review on the PS store for some reason, but just created my first gaming PC, and I thought why not get Marathon on here too to test out my new machine. Amazing game! Never been hooked to a game like this since OG CoD4/MW2. Being a developer/programmer, I love the themes of this game. Many UI elements mimic a computer terminal or some simplified computer component with some thrown in references to programming jargon. There's always a tension going on in the vibrant yet hostile environments with very simple mechanics (matching color coded keys or shooting panels to turn off hazards; I would like to see newer mechanics). The gameplay is the addicting part. You can infil with no gear or a free kit (best to do often imo) then the map is your oyster. You can also infil with gear you've found from previous runs to gain an advantage over other players. Either play tactically trying to keep noise to a minimum while completing objectives or go gung-ho by blasting anything in sight (I used to play a lot of Metal Gear so the tactical movement fits my playstyle more.) The game has 4 maps, one of which has a night variation so it plays a bit differently. All the maps are a very good size and have a handful of POIs that serve as the main locations to explore and loot. Cryo Archive is the end game map that features very close quarters and many convoluted pathways that eventually lead to a final boss. No other experience in gaming has scratched this itch I never knew I had. Playing end-game content with the hostility of other players and CPU opponents comes off confusing at first yet mysteriously satisfying once it all clicks. Gameplay is solid. The guns have weight to them, and they also have their own special situations in which they'd dominate more so than other situations (SMGs/Shotguns for close quarters & Snipers/ARs for long range). I will say though the sandbox balancing has been a bit all over the place but not so bad that some weapons are completely out of the question (those weapons require a well thought out playstyle/meta to work). With any video game, balancing is tough act to get together and this game does a decent job at it (could be better imo). Some weapons see more love than others from the developers, and I look forward to how this game will evolve with the weapons sandbox next season. My only gripe about the gameplay is the "client side prediction/rewind feature". This feature was implemented as some sort of anti-cheat built deeply with in the game's framework and it is noticeably the source of a lot of desyncs/rubberbanding happening within the game. The story of this game follows its predecessors with a sort of retconned ending(?). Basically the UESC Marathon is a ship that sent a colony of humans to inhabit a new solar system. The shipped was attacked and lost contact with earth. Runners (the mercenaries/plunderers we play as) are sent to scavenge, loot, and defend the interests of other parties (the corps/groups) whilst gaining from the spoils of their labors. Upon reaching the Tau Ceti system, the mystery, rampant AI, and alien foes present a challenge to the runners that are interested in uncovering the truth of what the Marathon's colony succumbed to. Won't spoil much more here, but a lot of terrible things happened to the colonists (plenty of text and audio logs to read; nice callback to the original Marathon games btw). What I'd like to see happen in following seasons are hidden clues to loot or even in-game events that are hidden within the logs. As of now the game's story is very piecemeal since unlocking each part of the codex depends what a Runner exfils with. Very specific items in very specific locations add more details to the story. Final words for this review: It's an amazing game once again. Yes, losing is tough in this game, however, I encourage others that play to try all facets of this game. There are definitely unexplored metas, loot to be gained (or regained) from Rook runs, and plenty of community support in discord groups. Learn from the experiences and take that knowledge further. Record clips of your last moments and think about what you could've done differently. What throwable equipment did you have in your pack before you went down? Did you reload your weapon before climbing up a scaffold on Outpost? Could you have gone to an armory, disarmed claymores and have been more prepared? Did you have a Cardio Kick consumable ready for when final exfil popped? The list of thoughts and questions never end. This game has moments where it feels like a game of chess. I'm always trying to predict where, when, how, and even what my opponents will do. It changes almost every time and that fresh, thoughtful gameplay experience is why I AM HOOKED.