Bungie is set to unveil more details about its highly anticipated PvP extraction shooter, Marathon, through an exciting gameplay livestream scheduled for this Saturday, April 12 (or Sunday, April 13, depending on your global location). The excitement began last week when the Destiny developer teased fans with a cryptic tweet featuring a peculiar 15-second video, sparking a community-wide sleuthing frenzy as part of an "extensive alternative reality game."

Astute players deciphered hidden ASCII art in the video, discovering "a snippet of footage from the initial trailer," specifically, "the runner sprinting down a hall from the trailer." Another clue surfaced with the message: "WHEN WILL HE RETURN ERROR ERROR ERROR HAS OCCURRED THE ENEMY RETURNED SYSTEM WARNING: PROTOCOL BREACH EVACUATE THE BASE IMMEDIATELY ALL UNITS REPORT TO STATION INITIATE EMERGENCY PROTOCOL 7 DATA LOSS IMMINENT GOOD LUCK, COMMANDER."

Bungie acknowledged the community's efforts, stating, "Thousands of community members across the world worked together to unlock the gameplay reveal date for Bungie’s upcoming extraction shooter Marathon." The livestream is scheduled for 10 am PDT (San Francisco) / 1 pm EDT (New York) / 6 pm BST (London) / 7 pm CEST (Berlin/Paris) / 9 pm GST (Dubai) or on Sunday, April 13 at 2 am JST (Tokyo) / 3 am AEST (Sydney) / 5 pm NZST (Auckland).

Marathon was first unveiled in May 2023 as a reboot of the classic Bungie franchise, emphasizing themes of "mysteries, eeriness, and psychological creepiness." The game is set on the mysterious planet of Tau Ceti IV, where players will embody Runners, cybernetic mercenaries equipped to endure the planet's harsh conditions. As they explore the remnants of a lost colony, players will hunt for valuable loot, including new weapons and gear.

Since the initial announcement, updates have been sparse. A development update video in October provided insights into Marathon's mechanics, yet emphasized the game's early stage of development. Amidst this, Sony's strategic pivot away from live-service games, following the cancellation of Concord, has seen Sony's president Hiroki Totoki announce in November 2023 a reduced focus on live service titles. Sony now plans to launch only six of the planned 12 live service games by March 2026, a shift that also led to the cancellation of The Last of Us multiplayer game.

Bungie has faced its own challenges, including significant layoffs, with 220 staff members — representing 17% of its workforce — let go in July 2024, following 100 layoffs the previous year. Additionally, former Marathon director Chris Barrett was reportedly fired after an internal misconduct investigation, subsequently filing a lawsuit against Sony Interactive Entertainment and Bungie for over $200 million.

To catch the Marathon gameplay reveal live, tune into the official Marathon Twitch channel on April 12.