Bungie is delayingMarathonout of its scheduled Sept. 23 release date, the studio announced today.
The move will not come as a surprise to many after alackluster alpha test,plagiarism controversy, and overall lukewarm feeling around the game that failed to generate much hype after players got their hands on it earlier this year.
“The Alpha test created an opportunity for us to calibrate and focus the game on what will make it uniquely compelling—survival under pressure, mystery and lore around every corner, raid-like endgame challenges, and Bungie’s genre-defining FPS combat,” Bungiesaid. “We’re using this time to empower the team to create the intense, high-stakes experience that a title likeMarathonis built around. This means deepening the relationship between the developers and the game’s most important voices: our players.”
Bungie says that its immediate focus areas will be “upping the survival game,” such as making AI encounters more challenging and engaging, making runs feel more rewarding, and making combat feel more tense and strategic.
Another focus will be “doubling down on theMarathonuniverse” by increasing visual fidelity, adding more narrative and environmental storytelling, and delivering a ‘darker tone that delivers on the themes of the original trilogy.”
Lastly,Marathonwill be getting “more social experiences” like proximity chat and “a better player experience for solos and duos. This sounds like a good start for Bungie, which seemingly has a lot of work to do for the game to enter a state where it and PlayStation feel confident it can succeed with.
“Thank you again for your patience and— much more importantly— your passion,” Bungie said. “Your continued feedback will help us makeMarathonthe incredible gaming experience we all know it can be.”
Bungie said progress on the game will be shared later in the fall, along with the game’s new release date.
