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The upcoming sci-fi extraction shooter, the studio's much-anticipated game, has made a reappearance with the announcement of a exclusive testing phase scheduled to take place soon.

A Rocky Development Journey

Initially revealed during the 2023 gaming showcase, the game has experienced a bumpy creation process. Last fall, Bungie announced it was aiming to start Alpha tests during the coming year. This was followed by quiet months, until the project was re-revealed in April with a planned September release. However, following initial testing resulted in negative feedback, the studio revealed during summer that it was postponing the game's launch.

Avoiding Past Mistakes

Though Marathon has already seen its portion of controversies, the development team appears determined to make certain their project avoids Concord's fate. Now, it seems the game's development is finally getting back on track, as Bungie just revealed that it has run "several closed playtests to gather feedback on the game" since this past summer. The studio is expanding access, allowing more players to catch a glimpse of the game via an upcoming "closed technical test."

Technical Test Details

Given the fact that it's a closed technical test, it's naturally limited access than, say, an public test. To participate in the exclusive trial — which takes place between Oct. 22 at 10 a.m. PDT to Oct. 28 at 10 a.m. PDT — participants must meet the following requirements:

• Apply via their platform
• Reside in Europe or North America
• Own a PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X or S, or compatible computer (minimum PC specs include an compatible CPU, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti GPU, and 8GB RAM)
• Participate in the official Discord server
• Complete confidentiality agreement via the Discord server

Application Process

Registration is currently available, and to be considered for the private trial, applicants must submit their application by the October 16th deadline. Players on Windows PC can also register via Steam starting on October 13th, with Steam applications due by Oct. 26 at 4 p.m. PDT. Bungie will contact players who qualify and inform them of the following procedures.

"This represents a crucial milestone for us as we test our improvements since Marathon's Alpha, including three maps, five runner shells, proximity communication, adjusted gameplay rhythm, solo queue, enhanced narrative elements, and additional features," the studio stated. "However, the current version is a work in progress and will only include a portion of what's planned for the game's full release, concentrating on the early player experience."

Further Details

Additional details about the private trial and the game itself can be found on the game's support section. But for players who aren't selected for the trial (or don't have time), there's still good news: Bungie says a official announcement on the state of the game is the following item on the schedule once the trial concludes.

"We'll be sharing a public update on Marathon's development in the near future after the private testing phase!" The studio shared.