Summary

  • Marathon's game director has been replaced by Valorant's former director, leading to some gameplay adjustments.
  • The game will feature an extraction shooter-like approach, where players attempt to loot and extract safely while battling enemies.
  • Bungie may face financial challenges, with layoffs feared unless Destiny 2's expansion performs well in June.

Bungie's next game, Marathon, has reportedly undergone major changes in recent months, including its game director being replaced with Valorant's former director, who has been with Bungie since 2022. Sources also claim that the direction of Bungie's next title has slightly shifted.

Earlier leaks surrounding Marathon's development revealed its extraction shooter-like approach that sees players enter a map, explore and loot it, complete missions, and attempt to extract safely, all while battling against AI and human enemies. Over recent years, the genre has proven to be a hit among multiplayer shooter fans, exemplified by games like Escape from Tarkov and Hunt: Showdown. Following the recent shifts in Bungie's creative leadership, this approach seems to still be in place but with some minor adjustments.

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IGN reports that Marathon director Christopher Barnett was replaced with Joe Ziegler, who worked for Riot Games until 2022 where he served as Valorant's game director. Shortly after IGN reached out to Bungie for comment, Ziegler confirmed the news on Twitter by explaining he had been working as Marathon's game director for the last nine months. Bungie is reportedly undergoing additional shakeups involving Marathon's creative leadership, but the other changes are unspecified. These adjustments have apparently resulted in some slight shifts to Marathon's gameplay, including the replacement of custom characters with a cast of heroes. While the other gameplay changes are unspecified at this time, Ziegler's tweet says that he's "excited to share... More info on the game as we get closer and closer to bringing it to all of you."

Bungie Replaces Marathon's Game Director

Sources also claim that "nothing adds up" regarding Bungie's budget and action will inevitably need to be taken to curb costs unless Destiny 2's The Final Shape expansion does exceedingly well. This rumor and others have led to growing fears within Bungie that additional layoffs could occur following the expansion's release in June.

Back in October, Bungie was hit with a round of layoffs that saw about 100 employees let go. Unaffected employees had their benefits reduced, with both of these events reportedly leading to decreased morale within Bungie. This was also accompanied by news that Marathon had been delayed to 2025.

A Bungie job listing from 2023 hinted that Marathon will use a revamped version of Destiny's Tiger engine. However, other than this info and the previously mentioned rumors, very little is known about the major studio's next game.