Marathon will not use aggression-based matchmaking like ARC Raiders. All players face the same unpredictable PvPvE environment, no matter their playstyle.
Bungie’s Joe Ziegler explained that separating aggressive and passive players would ruin the game’s core tension. “The thrill comes from not knowing what’s coming next — every encounter matters,” he said.
Unlike ARC Raiders, which groups players by behavior, Marathon keeps mixed interactions to maintain strategy, risk, and psychological pressure in every match.
Why Marathon Avoids Aggression-Based Matchmaking
Marathon is built for unpredictability. Bungie intentionally avoids a Marathon aggression-based matchmaking system, keeping aggressive and passive players together to maintain tension and high-stakes gameplay. It was explained in Joe Ziegler interview with Ali213.
In contrast, the ARC Raiders matchmaking system is used to separate player types, creating a more controlled and predictable experience.
Ziegler notes that removing this mix in Marathon would flatten the gameplay, because every extraction loop becomes a high-stakes choice between fighting, looting, or escaping.
Gameplay Systems
Marathon’s PvPvE mechanics encourage careful decision-making and emergent chaos. The most essential systems:
- You must decide when to fight, loot, or extract to maximize rewards.
- Encounters involve both AI enemies and human opponents, keeping each match unpredictable.
- Customizing builds with implants and Runner Shells allows players to adapt their playstyle.
- You can play solo or with a squad, adjusting your strategy on the fly to gain an advantage.
- Console crossplay ensures you can face friends and rivals across all platforms.
Unlike ARC Raiders, which separates aggressive players for multiplayer balance, Marathon keeps everyone mixed, making each match tense, unpredictable, and endlessly replayable.
Design Philosophy
The recent Marathon Server Slam beta and the upcoming full launch on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S highlight Bungie’s confidence in this approach. Competitive FPS design principles guide every decision, keeping the experience fair but unpredictable.
Bungie officially presented key features and updates during a PlayStation State of Play. And Sony Interactive Entertainment has publicly backed the project, highlighting improvements from post-playtest feedback.
Unpredictability and player choice make every extraction high-risk and high-reward. This design reinforces Marathon’s identity as a Bungie extraction shooter PvPvE where every decision matters.
Studio Background
Bungie has decades of experience shaping multiplayer shooters, from Halo to Destiny. Their move into competitive live-service model with Marathon shows the studio evolving while keeping its signature PvPvE intensity.
Market Impact
Extraction shooters are booming, and Marathon and ARC Raiders show two very different approaches.
ARC Raiders:
- uses aggression-based matchmaking to separate highly aggressive players from more PvE-focused ones.
- focuses on curated fairness and more controlled match balance.
- reduces unpredictable player encounters to create a steadier experience, limiting the impact of the griefing system.
On the other hand, Marathon:
- keeps aggressive and passive players in the same matches to maximize tension.
- prioritizes unpredictability and risk-reward decision-making in every extraction.
- encourages emergent gameplay moments that drive streaming content and community debate, amplified by proximity chat interactions.
- positions itself as a high-risk, high-reward PvPvE competitor in the evolving extraction shooter genre.
This emergent chaos fuels streaming clips, Reddit debates, and social media buzz, strengthening long-term engagement.
Conclusion
Marathon is clearly choosing unpredictability over controlled balance. By keeping all player types together, Bungie is building a PvPvE identity centered on player tension and risk.
Long term, the question is simple: Will the market reward structured fairness through skill-based matchmaking, or will players choose high-stakes, player-driven chaos?
Release Date: March 5, 2026 Genres: Extraction ShooterMarathon
Release Date: October 30, 2025 Genres: Extraction ShooterARC Raiders
