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The upcoming sci-fi extraction shooter, Bungie's highly-anticipated project, has made a reappearance with the news of a exclusive testing phase scheduled to take place soon.

A Rocky Development Journey

Initially revealed during the 2023 PlayStation Showcase, the game has undergone a bumpy development cycle. Last fall, the developer announced it was aiming to start Alpha tests during the coming year. A period of silence followed, until the game was re-revealed in April with a Sept. 23 launch date. However, following initial testing led to mixed reactions, the studio revealed during summer that it was delaying Marathon indefinitely.

Avoiding Past Mistakes

Despite the title has already seen its fair share of issues, Bungie appears committed to ensure Marathon doesn't suffer Concord's fate. Now, it appears the game's development is moving forward again, as Bungie just disclosed that it has run "several closed playtests to collect player input on Marathon" since this past summer. The developer is expanding access, enabling more players to catch a glimpse of the game via an upcoming "closed technical test."

Exclusive Testing Information

Considering it's a private testing phase, it's understandably limited access than, for example, an open beta. To participate in the exclusive trial — which takes place between Oct. 22 at 10 a.m. PDT to October 28th — participants must satisfy the listed requirements:

• Submit an application via the official website
• Reside in Europe or North America
• Have access to a PlayStation 5, Xbox console, or Windows PC (minimum PC specs include an Intel Core i5-6600 processor, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti GPU, and 8GB RAM)
• Join the official Discord server
• Sign an NDA via the online community

How to Apply

Registration is currently available, and to be eligible for the technical test, players must submit their application by the October 16th deadline. PC users can also register via Steam starting on October 13th, with Steam applications due by Oct. 26 at 4 p.m. PDT. The developer will contact players who qualify and inform them of the following procedures.

"This is an important checkpoint for us as we test our improvements since Marathon's Alpha, including three maps, five runner shells, prox chat, adjusted gameplay rhythm, individual matchmaking, deeper environmental storytelling, and additional features," Bungie stated. "However, the current version is a development build and will only include a selection of what's planned for the game's final version, focused on the early player experience."

Additional Information

More info about the technical test and the game itself can be found on the game's help page. But for players who aren't selected for the test (or don't have time), there's positive developments: Bungie says a public update on the project's status is the next thing on the agenda once the trial concludes.

"We'll be sharing a comprehensive report on Marathon's development in the near future after the private testing phase!" The studio shared.