Marathon is marching onwards to its launch next month, but there are still plenty of questions that remain unanswered, such as the launch date for Season 1. However, those walking in and expecting an ARC Raiders-style community that wants to cooperate and get along might want to keep one finger on the trigger.
In a new interview with Ali213 (machine translated to English), director Joe Ziegler said the team didn’t implement any “specific matchmaking rules to distinguish ‘non-combat-oriented players.’
“But we will provide tools like proximity voice chat to enable such players to meet and communicate within the game. In Marathon, the core survival experience hinges on the tension and suspicion stemming from the uncertainty of whether other players harbor hostile intentions—it is precisely this sense of the unknown that fuels the unpredictability of every high-speed encounter.”
The aggression-based matchmaking in ARC Raiders, which more often pairs those who don’t shoot at others (and vice versa), isn’t exactly one-to-one, and many other factors are at play. Regardless, none of those safety nets is in place with Marathon, especially if you decide to run solo as a Rook. If it’s any consolation, though, console players can opt out of cross-platform play.
“We will provide cross-platform players with an account binding option, enabling a single save file shared across all platforms. Whether you play on PlayStation 5 or PC, you can continue your progress using the same account,” said Ziegler. “Regarding controller versus keyboard/mouse controls, we’ve implemented numerous optimisations to ensure smooth co-op gameplay between players using both input methods, while maintaining fairness and excitement for all. However, we will offer console players a matchmaking restriction feature, allowing them to opt out of being matched with PC players.”
With concerns around cheating, providing those on consoles with the option is ideal. You would think that Marathon would have a robust anti-cheat solution, but no one is perfect. Look no further than ARC Raiders, which had to take a harsher stand to snuff out cheaters.
Marathon launches on March 5th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. A Server Slam preview for all platforms is scheduled from February 26th to March 2nd, offering two zones, initial Contracts for five of the six Factions, and more.
