• Bungie’s next game is actually Marathon, a game it launched in 1994.
• The game will take the form of an extraction shooter with persistent, constantly evolving combat zones.
• The developer has said it will now go radio-silent until it has gameplay footage to share.

As part of its 30th Anniversary celebration, Bungie released a number of in-game items for Destiny 2 inspired by titles the developer worked on in the past. Among the Halo themed weapons and Bungie regalia there were ornaments for a game called Marathon.

That name was brought up again on Wednesday evening when Bungie finally revealed the next game its working on, Marathon.

This is Bungie’s first “new” game since Destiny launched in 2014. Marathon will take the form of a sci-fi PvP extraction shooter set on the lost colony planet of Tau Ceti IV.

Players will take on the role of a runner (described by Bungie as a cybernetic mercenary) in search of implants, artefacts and weapons on the planet. Runners can be customised as can a player’s specific playstyle.

While play zones will be persistent, Bungie appears to be dropping inspiration from Destiny into Marathon by way of a constantly evolving world and story line.

“A massive ghost ship hangs in low orbit over a lost colony. The 30,000 souls who called this world home have disappeared without a trace. Strange signals hint at rumors of mysterious artifacts, long-dormant AI, and troves of untold riches. You are a cybernetic mercenary – a Runner – and your destination is Tau Ceti IV. You are one of many, working solo or with a crew, venturing into the unknown and facing the unimaginable in a fight for survival, for riches, for fame… and for infamy. Who among you will write their names across the stars,” reads a blurb about the game.

For Destiny players, a pure PVP game brings with it fears of hacking and manipulation but Bungie has said that Marathon is built with security as a priority.

The game will feature full cross save and cross play across PlayStation, Xbox and PC when it launches. When will Marathon launch? That’s an unknown quantity at this stage.

In the Bungie ViDoc below we’re told that the team will go quiet for a while following this announcement as it develops and hones the experience.

“Next time you hear from us we’re going to be much closer to the release and we’ll be ready to reveal gameplay,” said Scott Taylor, General Manager for Marathon.

We are very excited to learn more about this game. Bungie’s ability to make a shooter feel and look great is second to none so we have high hopes for this one. Whether the concept of an extraction shooter sticks though is going to be interesting to see.

In the meantime Bungie has launched a Marathon website but our security software flags it as a potential hazard.