Bungie shared what awaits fans of its sci-fi PvEvP extraction shooter, Marathon, including expanded gameplay mechanics and varied difficulty levels.

The developers will preserve the PvEvP mode and integrate it into a connected set of PvE, PvP, and PvEvP experiences. Other goals include different levels of intensity and commitment, options for solo players and a co-op mode, simpler onboarding for new players, and experiences built around cooperation, competition, and high-risk survival.

The first updates introducing the new options are right around the corner. Nightfall Refresh in October will bring new features to progression, rewards, and the live experience. In December, a major Symbiosis update will introduce Marathon's first permanent PvE experience, an expanded Perimeter, a new shell, improved onboarding, and a social space.

The studio will continue working on PvE, PvP, and PvEvP modes, planned to launch as connected experiences in the next update in March, with deeper progression, a refactored Cradle, more narrative, new enemies, and an entirely new zone.

Kevin Yanes, Senior Design Lead on Marathon, admitted the game's launch fell short of the team's expectations. "Launch didn't go how we wanted it to," he said. "We all built a game that we believed would resonate, but I think when you're so close to something, it's hard to see the bigger picture objectively. So we made a game that was overly difficult for a lot of folks."

He added that the studio's ambitions for the genre didn't go as planned: "We all thought we were gonna bring extraction to the masses, and we didn't. We built very much an extraction shooter as you've ever seen one."

Game Director Del Chafe III made a similar point, noting: "One of the things we learned at launch is that our game is pretty niche."

Creative Director Julia Nardin said the game needs to evolve into what a "Bungie game" should be. "It's a really solid PvPvE experience, but that's not what a Bungie game is. A Bungie game needs to be more than that. We need more modes. We need a PvE mode. We need a PvP mode."

She continued: "There's components of the Bungie DNA, and [the game] has a lot of them missing. It's our job over the next year to weave those strands back in to create a holistic player experience that people recognize as being truly Bungie."

Recently, Bungie also shared its plans to return the previously vaulted game content in Destiny.

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