# Marathon review deep dive: why Bungie’s shooter is still splitting critics

**June 20, 2026 · Perthro**

Bungie released Marathon on March 5, 2026 for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. By late June the launch noise has faded and the picture is clearer: OpenCritic lists an 81 top-critic average with 72% recommending it, Metacritic's platform scores sit between 81 and 83, and the user response is much colder.

Both sides have a point. The critics who love it admit the rough edges are real, and the players bouncing off it aren't confused about what an extraction shooter is. Marathon runs on stress, risk and hostile PvP, which some players find thrilling and others find punishing. Whether it's for you depends on how much you'll put up with in the first ten hours for the chance that the next fight is electric.

![Marathon screenshot: the bright, synthetic world of Tau Ceti IV](https://perthro.io/assets/blog/0642507ebccc7dd5.jpg)

## Marathon review scores

- **OpenCritic:** 81 (Strong), 72% recommend
- **Metacritic:** 82 on PS5, 83 on Xbox Series X, 81 on PC; mixed user scores
- **IGN:** 9/10
- **PC Gamer:** 9/10
- **GamesRadar:** 4.5/5
- **Eurogamer:** 4/5

High enough to call it a success on craft; low enough to show friction. The top reviews are open about that friction.

Travis Northup at IGN called Marathon "ruthless" and "unforgiving," but "worth every ounce of hell it puts you through." He praises the gunplay, the lore and a loot grind that's hard to walk away from, then spends real time on awkward terrain, inconsistent mantling, balance problems and what he flatly calls a UI problem.

PC Gamer calls it "a brilliant distillation of what makes extraction shooters great," adding: "Marathon is brutal. It's also a marvel." It describes nights of rare guns and expensive attachments followed by squad wipes, empty pockets, and scraping together one more loadout because the next run might go your way.

Eurogamer calls the combat "spellbinding" and compares Marathon with Arc Raiders, which made the genre more approachable. Marathon seems almost proud of how little it cares about being liked by everyone.

GamesRadar calls it "my favorite multiplayer shooter in years," praising the art, fast PvP and range of play styles, while flagging an overloaded UI, clunky in-raid inventory and weak support for solo players in some endgame areas.

## What critics agree on: the gunplay and the art

Marathon feels great to play, and that matters more here than in a gentler game. Extraction shooters depend on the moment another squad shows up and your careful scavenging turns into a fight for everything in your bag.

IGN spends paragraphs on how Bungie's guns feel: the snap of a rifle, the click of a trigger, shields cracking, enemies staggering, recoil with a rhythm to it. PC Gamer says Bungie has built a format where PvP is the star and loot gives every fight stakes. Eurogamer says the combat makes the cruelty readable. Marathon isn't hard because of big numbers or opaque systems. It's hard because other players are dangerous, the maps push you into contact, and courage and stupidity are never far apart.

The other point of agreement is style. Marathon is bright, strange, synthetic and cold, nothing like the muddy military look of most extraction shooters. Eurogamer calls the visual design a triumph, describing Tau Ceti IV as flesh and cyberspace welded together. GamesRadar talks about synthetic skin, Shells, corporate factions and a world built from sinew and cable. PC Gamer says the game is drenched in lore, not just decorated with it. When you'll repeat the same actions for hundreds of hours, the place you repeat them in counts.

## Where critics split: onboarding, solo play and the UI

The arguments start with friction. Marathon wants to be hostile, and it doesn't always separate useful hostility from bad communication.

IGN criticizes geometry that snags you mid-fight and mantling that doesn't always work. GamesRadar points to an overloaded UI and clunky inventory during raids. PC Gamer, while praising the game, dwells on the emotional cost of repeated failure. In an extraction shooter, a confusing menu can cost you a whole run.

Solo play is another fault line. GamesRadar says Marathon supports stealthy solo runs through to aggressive trios, but that solo players are underserved in Cryo Archive and ranked. If you don't have a regular squad, that's a big deal. The reviews suggest the game is happiest with a coordinated group making decisions under pressure.

Metacritic's user scores show the cost. Some players praise the art, sound and high-risk loop. Others call out punishing matchmaking, weak onboarding and a live-service structure that feels less welcoming than Bungie's older games. The harshest reactions may be overblown, as they often are with big online games, but the frustration is real.

That's why "lowest-rated Bungie game" stuck for a while, even after later reviews pushed the average up. When a studio's history includes Halo and Destiny, a good score can still read as a stumble.

## Marathon at its best and worst

At its best: you drop onto Tau Ceti IV, finish a contract, hear another squad nearby, make a terrible decision, survive by a thread and extract with loot you were sure you'd lost. Reviewers say Bungie has sharpened that familiar loop. Smaller maps mean more contact, quick contracts keep runs short, and strong audio and gun feel keep fights readable even when they're messy.

At its worst: you load in underprepared, misunderstand a system, get deleted by players who already know every angle, fight the UI, lose your gear and wonder why anyone enjoys this. If you need steady progress, generous tutorials or a sense that your time is respected, it may feel like a door slammed in your face.

Some games are good because nearly anyone can get into them. Others are good because they know exactly who they're for, and Marathon is the second kind. Critics are responding to its confidence: the art, the gun feel, the dense maps, and the PvP pressure that makes every backpack feel heavier. Players who hate it are responding to the same confidence. Softening it might help, or it might ruin the part that works.

## Should you play Marathon?

An 81 tells you Marathon isn't a disaster. The 9/10s from IGN and PC Gamer tell you its highs are high enough for some critics to forgive a lot. The mixed user scores tell you the bill comes quickly if you aren't already into extraction shooters.

Don't treat it like a regular Bungie shooter. If you want comfortable sci-fi co-op, this isn't it. If you want a stylish, mean shooter where a fifteen-minute run plays out like a small heist story, critics say there's something special here. It's also a reasonable game to shelve after two nights, pick back up when friends join, or leave on a wishlist until onboarding improves.