Bungie Prepares Major Marathon Update: PvE Mode Vault Breaker Launches in July

Despite Bungie's transition to actively supporting Marathon after the main story of Destiny 2 concluded, the new shooter has not yet managed to attract a wide audience. The second season shows results comparable to the first: the game received positive critical reviews and formed a small but dedicated community, however, the number of players still remains insufficient for confident commercial success.

Nevertheless, Bungie is not going to abandon the project and continues to develop it with a long-term perspective in mind. One of the main innovations of the second half of the second season will be the full-fledged PvE mode Vault Breaker, scheduled to launch on July 21.

The new mode is aimed at players who enjoy the atmosphere of Marathon, exploring locations, and intense gameplay, but who do not want to face threats from other users. In Vault Breaker, players will go to the Cryo Archive map — an endgame location that opened shortly after the game's release thanks to a large-scale community ARG campaign.

The mode supports solo, duo, and team runs. Players will have to storm a series of increasingly difficult vaults, gradually advancing towards a mysterious entity hidden in the depths of one of Marathon's most dangerous zones.

In addition to Vault Breaker, the July update will bring changes to the Cradle progression system. Bungie will introduce the Cradle Evolution system, allowing players to reset their progress to zero to gain an additional maximum energy point and exclusive cosmetic rewards, including new shell customization options. The developers will also accelerate progression within the system to make character re-development more rewarding.

At the same time, Bungie revealed the start date for Marathon's third season — it will begin on September 22. The season will bring a new runner, a redesigned starting map Perimeter, fresh enemies, additional events, and other content.