TheRetroArcade
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Posts: 1,967
Joined: Feb 2026
Joined: Feb 2026
Shoot second, die first.
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Marathon's four-day Server Slam concluded yesterday, and Bungie's been scouring over all the feedback it's received (and some interesting player-driven statistics, like how many bottles of alien milk you pinched from Tau Ceti). Given it's only a few days until launch, there's not much time to make changes ahead of release, but Bungie is considering time-to-kill changes and a duo queue: "Some of you want longer duels and more Runner contact, others are vibing with the current pace."
While the latter would be lovely—picking between solos or trios isn't perfect—I'm much less fond of the idea of tweaking the time-to-kill, despite how divisive it's been so far. As it stands, Marathon's TTK against other players is admittedly very fast. Generally speaking, if you're caught off-guard and someone opens fire, you're dead. Pray they've got bad aim, I guess, because you often don't have time to dive behind cover.
It sounds horrible at first, but the more I've played, the more the lethality has grown on me for a few important reasons—a feeling shared by fellow PC Gamer Morgan Park after sinking 21 hours into it over the weekend.
One of my favourite moments in Marathon so far has been taking down a full squad by myself. My two other teammates got jumped and executed, but I managed to outmanoeuvre the three aggressors to kill them and save my allies. This type of reversal of fate would be almost impossible with a longer TTK, which is an issue you see crop up in Arc Raiders. Better aim and positioning can often still come out on top.
Because of Marathon's remarkably generous revive system—you can revive allies even when they've been executed, so they're never truly dead—fights have the potential to drag on anyhow. Quick kills balance out the sustainability of engagements. Imagine having to spend more ammo and time killing a player, only for them to get revived shortly after by a rogue teammate and restart the hostilities.
Similar to the one and only Hunt: Showdown, a wicked fast TTK is there to encourage caution and awareness. Get caught out, and you're dead, so scan your surroundings, watch out for sound traps like birds, and don't fight the UESC bots unless you have to. Telegraphing your location to other players is just inviting a shootout, one that you're likely to lose if you're being reckless.
It's also important to note tha...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?
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Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
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Every Friday
GamesRadar+
Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.
Every Thursday
GTA 6 O'clock
Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.
Every Friday
Knowledge
From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.
Every Thursday
The Setup
Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.
Every Wednesday
Switch 2 Spotlight
Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.
Every Saturday
The Watchlist
Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.
Once a month
SFX
Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!
Marathon's four-day Server Slam concluded yesterday, and Bungie's been scouring over all the feedback it's received (and some interesting player-driven statistics, like how many bottles of alien milk you pinched from Tau Ceti). Given it's only a few days until launch, there's not much time to make changes ahead of release, but Bungie is considering time-to-kill changes and a duo queue: "Some of you want longer duels and more Runner contact, others are vibing with the current pace."
While the latter would be lovely—picking between solos or trios isn't perfect—I'm much less fond of the idea of tweaking the time-to-kill, despite how divisive it's been so far. As it stands, Marathon's TTK against other players is admittedly very fast. Generally speaking, if you're caught off-guard and someone opens fire, you're dead. Pray they've got bad aim, I guess, because you often don't have time to dive behind cover.
It sounds horrible at first, but the more I've played, the more the lethality has grown on me for a few important reasons—a feeling shared by fellow PC Gamer Morgan Park after sinking 21 hours into it over the weekend.
One of my favourite moments in Marathon so far has been taking down a full squad by myself. My two other teammates got jumped and executed, but I managed to outmanoeuvre the three aggressors to kill them and save my allies. This type of reversal of fate would be almost impossible with a longer TTK, which is an issue you see crop up in Arc Raiders. Better aim and positioning can often still come out on top.
Because of Marathon's remarkably generous revive system—you can revive allies even when they've been executed, so they're never truly dead—fights have the potential to drag on anyhow. Quick kills balance out the sustainability of engagements. Imagine having to spend more ammo and time killing a player, only for them to get revived shortly after by a rogue teammate and restart the hostilities.
Similar to the one and only Hunt: Showdown, a wicked fast TTK is there to encourage caution and awareness. Get caught out, and you're dead, so scan your surroundings, watch out for sound traps like birds, and don't fight the UESC bots unless you have to. Telegraphing your location to other players is just inviting a shootout, one that you're likely to lose if you're being reckless.
It's also important to note tha...Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?