Bungie is cracking down on cheaters in Marathon, stating that it has a zero-tolerance policy for wrongdoers, while also iterating on its anti-cheat tools. For the past few weeks, Marathon fans have discussed what appears to be an influx of cheaters in the game, either real or perceived. With the game still in a fragile state this close to launch, it makes sense that Bungie would prioritize stomping out the issue before it begins to bleed players.
Released in March, Marathon has been something of an odd case in the extraction shooter genre. The conversation leading up to launch was largely negative, as Bungie battled plagiarism controversies and critics expressed distaste over the art direction. The conversation improved after Bungie delayed Marathon, and it’s started to carve out some space in the increasingly crowded extraction shooter genre.
Bungie’s Marathon Gets Encouraging Update
The latest announcement from Bungie seems to be good news for Marathon fans who have been waiting for an update after months of controversy.
Bungie Addresses Marathon Cheaters
Over on Twitter, the official Marathon developer account shared an update about “cheaters, toxicity, and competitive integrity” in the game. The developer stated that it’s actively banning cheaters, maintaining its “zero-tolerance” policy for anyone who abuses the game. With that, Bungie is also iterating on Marathon‘s reporting tools for cheating and toxic behavior. The most significant change is making it easier to flag suspected cheaters in-game and via web tools.
In the long term, Bungie is focusing on improving voice chat moderation tools to help root out repeat abusers, in addition to the tools provided by individual platforms. Bungie is also working on addressing stream sniping, working with its trust and safety teams for better protections. Potential solutions include name privacy options, which would make it more difficult for other players to target streamers. The post ends with a call for fans to continue reporting suspicious and malicious behavior.
An even playing field is crucial to any game’s long-term health, doubly so for an extraction shooter, where death can set back hours of progress. And Marathon‘s long-term health should be a focus for Bungie, especially this early on. While it isn’t a perfect metric, Marathon‘s player count is down 59% since launch, and cheaters might be part of what’s fueling the decline. The fear is that Marathon will shut down if the player count dips too low, as has happened with Concord and Highguard. However, even with the decline, Marathon‘s situation doesn’t seem nearly as dire.
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Easy (7.5s)Medium (5.0s)Hard (2.5s)Permadeath (2.5s)
For its part, Bungie has been dropping Marathon updates at a relatively high pace, introducing minor tweaks and balance changes in addition to larger drops like the Cryo Archive map. And while fan concerns that Marathon might shut down are understandable given the current games industry landscape, Bungie has committed to sticking with Marathon for the long haul.
Anyone who has encountered cheaters in Marathon should start collecting and reporting evidence of misdeeds now. While it can seem like a never-ending battle to remove them from the game, community involvement makes it far easier to clean up a player base, and that leads to a more enjoyable experience for everyone looking to play Marathon.
- Released
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March 5, 2026
- ESRB
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Teen / Animated Blood, Language, Violence, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Multiplayer
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Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
