TDLR: three questions, plus I feel completely miserable playing Marathon, even though I want to be positive. Also, don’t buy Marathon until done proper research.
Hello everyone, I hope you are having a great day and enjoying the game if you are playing it.
- “A game for everyone is a game for no one.” Then why are so many players recommending it to random people?
I see online where a person will ask, “Hey, I was looking for a new game; here is what I like…” I do remember there was a person like that, and they were asking for a semi-casual multiplayer, Battlefield, or CoD-like game. Some of the comments were like, “Hey, I think you should try The Finals”, which would make sense, but then there were comments that said, “Hey, Marathon sounds like a game for you.” I am not trying to drive away players from buying Marathon, as, hey, who knows, they might think it’s perfect, but at the same time, based on what they described, why would you say Marathon? This also seems to happen with friend groups, but I don’t know any information about those people, so I can't say anything. It seems many players recommend games that they like and never recommend a game that they dislike to someone else. This doesn’t seem to be only the Marathon community, but just the gaming community in general too. Recommending a game should be because you think that the game will be enjoyable and has enough value for that specific person, not based on whether you personally like the game or not. I disliked Destiny, but I would still recommend it to someone if I thought they would like it. I loved World of Warships: Legends (over 2200 hours, 7-year veteran, Jean Bart being the first Campaign ship bought), but I wouldn’t recommend it to many players. Could someone please explain this, as I would love an answer.
Why I don’t like the statement “A game for everyone is a game for no one.” is a whole other long writing, so I will leave it to this: I agree that games should be made with an intended audience, but that statement seems to lead to many negative consequences, as I think it’s used to defend the wrong things.
Why do you think the “hate”/criticism is forced, if you believe it?
What problems do you seem to notice about the game, if any?
Sorry, but I don’t feel like writing much more, as I think Marathon has completely exhausted me and made me feel so miserable that I don’t want to write much. I'm not trying to rub the negativity on other people, as I genuinely hope people buy, play, and enjoy the game. I have a lot more to say, not all negative, as I have had some wholesome moments and stuff, but again, I don’t feel any motivation.
If you are interested in Marathon, just as I was, first looking at the trailers and videos, thinking, “this looks so sick”, do research first and especially don’t fall for the trap of “Marathon is actually good once you learn it”, or “Marathon is good, just no one wants to admit it”, and buy the game, pushing all the warnings and criticism aside, all because of wanting to listen to those players. Marathon can be a fantastic game for some people, and it has its own special dedicated niche player base, but I personally might have experienced the most miserable 112 hours of my life playing Marathon. I personally loved the art style (in general), the music was interesting, and the gunplay feel/feedback (not the combat) was extremely satisfying, as is normal for a Bungie game. The community can be great, but there is also the side of the community that will be toxic (not the behavior of aggression) towards you, calling you a “f*cking loser” 10 seconds into a run (that game I jumped off the platform on Outpost, killing myself; right after he said that, I was running a free kit, and normally I wouldn’t be so sensitive, but I was feeling extra miserable that day, even though I had exfiled most of the games before, and the guy just laughed before I left to the main menu). Ok, here are some more positive things: after playing solo for a while, I realized that most people just wanted to complete some contracts and do their own thing half the time, so I decided to collect extra self-revives or mercy kits and try to down enemy runners, and then revive them afterwards, sticking with them if they wanted to. I was able to save a few runners from bots and was able to make a Rook friend for an Outpost game after he tried to kill me initially; then I killed him with a claymore and a knife hit, and he finished self-reviving right after I finished a bot and did the up-and-down crouch thing, in which he tried to shoot me again, and I killed him again with a claymore and a knife hit, so I had to revive him with a mercy kit. Later in the run, we both went to the final exfil and extracted together. I was also able to find a pretty good group of two in trios (random fill). They had blue shield, and I was running a free kit; then they formed a group with me and asked if I could bring in better gear, like some green stuff, so I grabbed the one pre-made blue kit I had, and we played three matches together, killing two teams in two of the games, and got some great gear. I had said “sorry for not being the best” after a match, which I didn’t know at the time, but I did the most damage, with Vandal dealing 300, Triage dealing 400, and me as Assassin dealing 800 damage, and the only good play I made was flanking an enemy Triage and Thief after their Vandal died, and my team was fighting and holding the second-level door with Triage and Thief outside (this was at Station, Perimeter) and I decided to go to the third level catwalk to try to flank the two enemy runners, which I got some good hits in and finished Triage with my gun and help my Vandal finish the Thief running away. The gameplay is miserable, but the rewards that you can get are what make the game addicting.
Before recommending Marathon to anyone, I would say to do research and don’t end up like me, wasting $40 with a totally miserable experience of 112 hours. I do think people can definitely enjoy it, but just be prepared. I want to love Marathon, and I want it to succeed, but I feel miserable playing it, and I understand some reasons why it failed (this doesn’t mean I agree on a personal level with the complaints).
I also feel like it's so hard to engage with the Marathon community; it’s always, “maybe this game isn’t for you”, or “skill issue”, or whatever else. I wish this community was better, this doesn't mean they have to agree with my views or anything, but be more welcoming, kinder and engaging.
I don’t want to one of those people who is extremely negative, but I just wanted to vent.
I hope everyone has a great day. Sorry for the very long vent. I might come back to discuss more when I feel better.
