Hardly do I watch a trailer for a online game greater than as soon as. But with Bungie’s Marathon reboot/sequel/no matter, I’ve discovered myself looping its slick and trendy announcement trailer. It’s no longer simply for the reason that trailer slaps, however as a result of Bungie is teasing appears to be like to be one of the vital coolest shooters launched in years.
On March 24, in a while prior to a Spider-Guy 2 trailer would spark off a complete new “puddlegate,” Bungie (Halo, Future) published its subsequent giant first-person shooter: Marathon. If that identify sounds acquainted, that’s as a result of that is in reality Bungie returning to one among its oldest franchises, the Mac-only shooter trilogy, Marathon. You’ll learn extra about the ones outdated video games, their cherished lore, and the way it connects to Halo and trendy extraction shooters in this piece from our very personal Claire Jackson.
Then again, I’m no longer right here to discuss Marathon’s lore, historical past, fandom, or the rest involving the Bungie mythos. No, as a substitute, I wish to simply gush for a couple of paragraphs about how rattling refreshing and superior this recreation’s glance and announcement trailer are in comparison to maximum different shooters and video games available in the market nowadays. And I don’t appear to be by myself in loving this trailer because it has hit 18 million perspectives on YouTube already.
Marathon has one of the vital very best recreation trailers of 2023
From the instant the trailer’s intense digital tune kicks in at first, I used to be engaged. Then we see anyone in a rad-looking sci-fi-fi outfit working via a tunnel, all whilst pictures of vibrant-colored robotic insects create intricate android-like beings. What’s taking place right here? I don’t know, however did you simply pay attention that in poor health bit within the tune?
Anyway, the working personality breaks out of the darker tunnels and enters a surprisingly shiny international the place we see that also they are rocking bright colours, together with a shiny, neon-pink helmet. The tune builds because the digicam zooms in nearer and nearer to the runner. Issues really feel disturbing because the tune builds right into a virtual mess after which BAM! That’s all she wrote for this runner as they’re sniped from afar by means of a slick-looking and white-as-paper android. Our runner, now useless, is noticed collapsing in gradual movement into what seems to be a milk-like substance, their blue-inky blood blending and swirling into the water round their corpse. Because the robotic sniper rips out one thing from the useless runner the tune builds once more, system faults out, and BAM! Bungie unearths that this bright trailer used to be for a brand new Marathon.
“Colourful” is in reality the key phrase right here. The whole lot on this trailer pops in some way that I’ve no longer noticed in maximum different shooters launched in recent times. Numerous trendy shooters appear fascinated by realism, which will glance beautiful, but in addition slightly drab. The preferred colour scheme we most often see on shooters additionally begins to make shooters like Name of Responsibility and Battlefield mix in combination. Or all of them glance slightly too similar to Fortnite, which whilst colourful, isn’t visually distinct anymore. I revel in numerous those trendy shooters regardless. However with Marathon, issues are other.
If truth be told, it’s past colourful. It’s virtually garish with all of its pinks, yellows, vegetables, and blues clashing in just about each and every body. But it’s all balanced by means of hyper-realistic lighting fixtures, fabrics, textures, and fashions. The colour palettes are unimaginable to take a look at and a couple of folks at Kotaku couldn’t prevent gawking on the trailer.
Marathon’s new artwork taste is contemporary and ambitious
Bungie calls Marathon’s artwork taste “graphic realism,” as discussed in a up to date behind-the-scenes video concerning the rebooted shooter. Bungie dev Emily Katske additional elaborates at the recreation’s artwork, pronouncing it’s “daring, colourful [and] stylized.”
The sport’s director, Christopher Barret, in the similar video, additionally says that the workforce sought after the artwork to be “gorgeous” and “bright”, “mysterious” and “acquainted,” “but in addition, atypical.”
Typically, I’d roll my eyes slightly at this sort of communicate, however after seeing the trailer and thought artwork of this new tackle Marathon, yeah, I am getting it. Steadiness is essential, regardless that. Bungie has to rigorously steadiness when and the place to “dial [things] as much as 11” and when to tug again slightly so other folks don’t get crushed whilst looking to play.
It’s a dangerous possibility, taking a cherished franchise and remodeling it into one thing daring. It’s additionally relatively a departure from the unique Marathon video games, which featured extra subdued or dirty textures and Doom-like sprites. I’ve already noticed some longtime Marathon lovers disappointed about this new, extra colourful, and stylized course. And till we in reality play the overall recreation, we gained’t know if any of this may in reality figure out. Was once this a large, dear mistake? Or an enormous gamble that lands completely? No thought!
However Marathon’s trailer, thought artwork, and general taste has me extra excited than I anticipated to play this upcoming extraction shooter. I’m no longer even partial to that style of on-line FPS, however I wish to see extra of Marathon so badly that I’ll give it a shot. So long as I will waddle round Bungie’s new incredible-looking international for a couple of mins prior to getting killed, I’ll be at liberty to play and discover Marathon each time it comes out.
