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Marathon: Difference between revisions
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[[Image:Marathon - Defend THIS!.jpg|right|400px]] | [[Image:Marathon - Defend THIS!.jpg|right|400px]] | ||
Marathon is a series of first-person shooter games started by [[Bungie]]. The original game was released for Macintosh in 1994 and was preferred by Mac gamers as a more sophisticated alternative to the PC hit DOOM. As with the [[Myth]] series, Bungie made the first two games ('''Marathon''' and '''Marathon 2: Durandal''') and then another studio made the third ('''Marathon Infinity'''). Unlike Myth's third game, the third Marathon game stayed close to the previous games' roots because Marathon Infinity was created by [[wp:Double Aught|Double Aught]], a short-lived studio spun off from Bungie. | Marathon is a series of first-person shooter games started by [[Bungie]]. The original game was released for Macintosh in 1994 and was preferred by Mac gamers as a more sophisticated alternative to the PC hit DOOM. As with the [[Myth]] series, Bungie made the first two games ('''Marathon''' and '''Marathon 2: Durandal''') and then another studio made the third ('''Marathon Infinity'''). Unlike Myth's third game, the third Marathon game stayed close to the previous games' roots because Marathon Infinity was created by [[wp:Double Aught|Double Aught]], a short-lived studio spun off from Bungie which was co-founded by Marathon's lead writer, Greg Kirkpatrick. | ||
Bungie is known for cross-referencing their games, and indeed there are multiple references to Marathon in [[Oni]], documented in the [[Easter eggs]] article. | Bungie is known for cross-referencing their games, and indeed there are multiple references to Marathon in [[Oni]], documented in the [[Easter eggs]] article. | ||
[[Multiplayer| | Unlike Oni with its [[Multiplayer|canceled multiplayer]], Marathon shipped with a very popular multiplayer feature (LAN-only). Bungie also supported the modding community with helpful information on the file formats; they eventually released the development tools Forge and Anvil alongside Marathon Infinity. | ||
In 1999, the Marathon 2 engine was open-sourced by Bungie. This code was used to produce Aleph One, a unified engine which runs the scenarios for Marathon, Marathon 2, and Marathon Infinity as well as fan-made scenarios. The original LAN multiplayer mode was improved and extended to be Internet-capable. In 2005, the Marathon Trilogy was made freeware by Bungie, so anyone can download it legally and play it on modern computers with the Aleph One engine (see links below). | In 1999, the Marathon 2 engine was open-sourced by Bungie. This code was used by fans to produce Aleph One, a unified engine which runs the scenarios for Marathon, Marathon 2, and Marathon Infinity as well as fan-made scenarios. The original LAN multiplayer mode was improved and extended to be Internet-capable. In 2005, the Marathon Trilogy was made freeware by Bungie, so anyone can download it legally and play it on modern computers with the Aleph One engine (see links below). | ||
Unlike Oni and Myth, the rights to the Marathon [[wp:Intellectual property|IP]] never left Bungie's hands. Bungie announced in 2023 that they are returning to the IP with a new extraction shooter set on/around Tau Ceti, the location of the original Marathon. The game is in public alpha testing but a release date has not been announced. A major Oni reference has already been spotted | Unlike Oni and Myth, the rights to the Marathon [[wp:Intellectual property|IP]] never left Bungie's hands. Bungie announced in 2023 that they are returning to the IP with a new extraction shooter set on/around Tau Ceti, the location of the original Marathon. The game is in public alpha testing but a release date has not been announced. A major Oni reference has already been spotted in the form of the AI agent named ONI – see {{SectionLink|Easter eggs|Marathon (2025)}}. | ||
;Community links | ;Community links | ||