Marathon Finally Gets a PvE Mode So You Can Stop Getting Ganked, Plus a Free Week in December

Bungie is finally giving Marathon players a way to shoot things without getting ganked. The Symbiosis update lands on 8 December with a permanent PvE mode called Expedition, a 3v3 Team Deathmatch beta, a social space, a sword-swinging robot and a week where anyone can play for free.

Bungie showed it all off in a new gameplay trailer, and Sony backed it up with a PlayStation Blog post. It’s the first big step in what Bungie is calling the evolution of Marathon.

Everything coming in Symbiosis

Here’s the full list, straight from Bungie’s press release.

• Expedition: phase one of a new PvE-only mode built around a three-run series. Play solo or with a crew, with no PvP threats, and use Flash Boosts to shape your build mid-run. PC Gamer says the trailer calls it a “co-op PvE roguelite”.
• Deathmatch (beta): bite-sized 3v3 Team Deathmatch where two crews fight for points without risking their permanent loadout.
• Limbo: a new social space with firing ranges to test gear and a dueling pit to settle arguments.
• Perimeter zone update: fungal growth and alien life take over the map, adding the underground Burrows and the submerged Reservoir. A boss called the Tick Queen lurks below.
• Bishop: a new Runner shell built around a fast, blade-wielding robot.
• New weapons: the V17 Flamethrower for short-range area denial, and the Maverick, a revolver with a hand-cannon feel.

When it lands in NZ, and the free week

Bungie says 8 December but hasn’t given a launch time yet. That’s a Tuesday in the US, so expect it on Wednesday 9 December here, and we’ll update this when Bungie confirms.

• Open Play Week: 8 to 15 December, US dates. Anyone can jump in, and PC Gamer reports that progress and items carry over if you buy the game afterwards.
• Crew Up rewards: limited-time rewards for crewing up with Bungie, PS5, Xbox Series X|S and Steam friends, running until 22 December.
• The price: Marathon is NZ$67.95 on Steam right now, and it’s also on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S with full cross-play and cross-save.
• The catch: on console you’ll still need a paid online subscription to play, Bungie says.

Why Bungie needs this to work

Marathon launched on 5 March 2026. Eight months on, Steam’s own player-count data showed 1,799 people playing on PC when we checked on Wednesday evening NZ time.

That’s one snapshot, and it doesn’t count PS5 or Xbox players. But for a full-price game from the studio behind Halo and Destiny, it’s not the number anyone at Bungie or Sony wanted.

Extraction shooters have a PvE problem, too. Embark has spent months trying to decide what to do with ARC Raiders’ PvE test, and Bungie has just gone and committed to a permanent mode.

Our take

This is the update Marathon should have launched with. We reckon plenty of people liked the look of Tau Ceti and bounced off getting deleted by sweaty trios, and a PvE mode with roguelite runs gives them a reason to come back.

The free week is the smart bit. Getting people in the door for nothing is about the only way to fix a player count like that, and Sony has watched enough of its live-service bets die this week, with Fairgame$ binned on the same day.

But “phase one” is doing a lot of heavy lifting. If Expedition turns out to be three runs and a bloody grind wall, that free week is going to be a very loud seven days.

Are you giving Marathon another crack in December? Come argue about it in the GetRekt Discord. Everything else lives on our Marathon page.

Sources

• Bungie Press Room: First look, Marathon Symbiosis gameplay trailer reveals what’s coming December 8
• PlayStation Blog: Marathon Symbiosis update launches December 8
• PC Gamer: Bungie drops gameplay trailer for Marathon’s co-op PvE roguelite mode
• Steam: Marathon store page (NZ price and release date)
• Steam Web API: current Marathon players
• Marathon (YouTube): Symbiosis Gameplay Trailer