Bungie has made it quite clear that it has long-term plans for its divisive PS5 extraction shooter, Marathon.
The game launched earlier this year, and although sales estimates paint a less optimistic picture, it seems the studio has laid the groundwork for much more to come over the next few years.
Speaking to GamesRadar, creative director Julia Nardin speaks about the team’s intentions to keep the game’s narrative moving in step with players.
“We know where we want to take the story over the next few years, but I don’t want to say it’s completely ‘locked in’ because it’s important to us that our players be able to help shape it,” she says.
She describes the way fans can influence Marathon’s story is “part of the magic of playing a live service game.”
While the game’s story going forward has a loose direction that’ll be sculpted in some ways by players, the backstory will provide a more grounded context.
Nardin says that what happened on the planet Tau Ceti before the events of the game are in fact “locked”, and you gradually uncover that story as you make progress and collect specific things. It sounds like there will be more breadcrumbs to follow as Bungie adds more background lore to the experience.
She talks about how it’s “also important that players can jump into Marathon at any time,” explaining that major updates won’t prevent you from understanding the narrative.
“They’ll always be able to uncover the mysteries of Tau Ceti’s past while experiencing its present,” Nardin says. “We want every season to be a new entry point, and for new players to be able to understand what’s going on regardless of how long we’ve all been running.”
So, it sounds like Marathon will continue for years to come, and will evolve the story alongside the game itself.
