Bungie to hold closed Marathon technical test Oct 22-28

Bungie will hold a closed technical test of its extraction shooter Marathon from October 22 to October 28 on PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S, the studio announced, inviting players in North America and Europe to apply by October 16. The invitation-only test will be conducted under nondisclosure agreements, and Bungie said it will use the event to evaluate changes made since the game’s alpha, before providing a public development update after the session concludes.

Bungie described the test as an opportunity to validate improvements that address issues raised during earlier playtests. The Technical Test build will include three maps, five runner shells, proximity chat, a solo queue, retuned combat pacing, and deeper environmental storytelling, the company said. Bungie called the exercise “an important checkpoint for us as we test our improvements since Alpha,” and emphasized that the build is a work in progress focused on the early player experience.

Those chosen to participate must sign an NDA and will be able to play only within the test window. Bungie opened sign-ups immediately and said applications will be accepted through October 16, with a Steam-specific...