Bungie's highly anticipated extraction shooter Marathon stands as a bold undertaking in an industry increasingly wary of long-term risks on unproven intellectual properties. With the game now just weeks from launch, former franchise art director Joseph Cross has offered candid reflections on the enormous scale and gamble involved in its creation.
In an interview with ReaderGrev, Cross described how Marathon exemplifies a type of high-stakes production that may soon become rare. "Marathon is such a massive project. The studio took such a risk on this. You know, oftentimes we felt like we were sort of getting away with something," he said. He expanded on the broader implications for the industry, questioning the sustainability of these commitments:
I think about that in the big picture, the idea of studios funding unproven, unknown projects for six or eight years, for hundreds of millions of dollars, sort of on spec. How much longer are things like this going to exist? I've been part of a couple of them now.
These reflections underscore a growing tension between creative ambition and financial realities in modern game development. Large teams pour years into titles without guaranteed returns, betting on innovation to pay off.
Cross also delved into the day-to-day pressures that accompany such endeavors, particularly the psychological strain on artists striving to maintain vision amid mounting costs. "It's not always intuitive to remember that above all of this is this product that's being funded, and every day that goes by is a day you're further into the red. You're not making money. The studio is not making any money," he noted. This financial backdrop can stifle bold choices, yet Cross emphasized the necessity of resilience in pursuing artistic integrity:
So anyway, that's a big one, especially when you're really trying to channel creativity and get to the point where you feel like you can't impose anything that feels like a risk. I mean, what a mind f--- that is, right? That's where you have to sort of put on the armor of art and have faith in your perspective and experience as an artist. All great art, commercial art anyways, it's doubted, and there’s a level of skepticism--until there's not.
His comments paint a picture of creators navigating doubt and pressure while defending their work, a dynamic that has historically fueled groundbreaking titles but now faces scrutiny in an era of tighter budgets and higher expectations for immediate viability.
Marathon revives the classic franchise name as a team-based extraction shooter set on the mysterious planet Tau Ceti IV. Players take on the role of Runners—moddable biosynthetic bodies designed for survival—competing to extract valuable artifacts while facing rival teams and environmental hazards. Bungie positions the game as a fresh multiplayer experience drawing from the studio's legacy in titles like Halo and Destiny, but with a focus on high-stakes, session-based gameplay.
The project has generated significant buzz, with pre-orders now live and strong early interest demonstrated on platforms like Steam. Despite development hurdles, including shifts in design direction and public tests that prompted adjustments, Marathon is poised to launch as Bungie's first major new IP in nearly a decade.
The game is scheduled for release on March 5, 2026, across PC (via Steam), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. It will be available in Standard and Deluxe editions, priced at $40 for the base version, with full cross-play and cross-save support. Pre-orders are currently available, accompanied by a recent pre-order trailer showcasing the game's intense action and atmospheric world-building.
As the industry evolves, Marathon may indeed mark the end of an era for expansive, speculative projects like this one—ambitious visions funded on faith in their potential rather than proven formulas. Whether it succeeds commercially could influence how studios approach similar endeavors moving forward.
You can watch the official pre-order trailer for Marathon below:
