Bungie Sets Marathon Release for March 2026 — Server Slam Begins February 26
Extraction shooters are the genre everyone is scrambling to stake a claim in, and Bungie is officially stepping back into the arena with Marathon — a slick, neon‑drenched PvPvE reboot of its classic IP. Destiny veterans know exactly how Bungie builds a sandbox, and the studio clearly wants this one to hit hard enough to earn its own seat at the table.
Now, after months of speculation, delays, and a whole lot of “we’ll talk about it soon,” Bungie has finally circled a date on the calendar.
Marathon Launches March 5, 2026 — For Real This Time
Bungie has confirmed that Marathon will officially launch on March 5, 2026, across all platforms.
It’s been a journey getting here. The game was originally slated for September 2025, but after rough alpha feedback and a scandal involving the unauthorized use of an artist’s work. Bungie hit pause and delayed the project indefinitely. That “indefinite” window ended up being a six‑month breather — long enough to retool, not long enough to disappear into development limbo.
Now the studio is ready to pull the trigger.
Want In Early? The Server Slam Playtest Starts February 26
If you’re itching to dive in before launch, Bungie is running a Server Slam Playtest starting February 26, 2026. It won’t be the full package, but it will give players a taste of the extraction loop, the movement tech, and the PvPvE chaos Bungie is banking on.
Think of it as the studio’s final stress test — and your first chance to see whether Marathon has the legs to compete in a genre that’s getting more crowded by the month.
Expected Release Times — Based on Bungie’s Own Patterns
Bungie hasn’t confirmed exact global launch times yet, but the Server Slam schedule — and Destiny 2’s long‑standing daily reset — point to a 9 AM PT release window on March 5.
Here’s how that lines up across major regions:
| Region | Marathon Release Time |
| Pacific Time (PT) | 9:00 AM — March 5 |
| Central Time (CT) | 11:00 AM — March 5 |
| Eastern Time (ET) | 12:00 PM — March 5 |
| Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) | 5:00 PM — March 5 |
| Australian Eastern Time (AET) | 2:00 AM — March 6 |
| New Zealand Daylight Time (NZDT) | 4:00 AM — March 6 |
If Bungie sticks to its usual cadence, these times should be close to final.
A Premium Extraction Shooter in a Free‑to‑Play World
Alongside the release window, Bungie confirmed pricing:
$39.99 / €39.99 / £34.99, depending on region.
That’s a bold move in a genre dominated by free‑to‑play heavyweights. Bungie is clearly positioning Marathon as a premium extraction shooter — something polished, curated, and built for long‑term support rather than seasonal churn. Some might say that it could be a nice reprieve from the free-to-play game quagmire that’s been created, but judgment will be postponed until after the launch.
If they can do it successfully, then the price is going to be worth the price tag that have listed!
The studio reiterated the March 2026 window in its latest ViDoc, which also revealed an alternate internal target of March 26 — meaning the exact date may still shift slightly, but the month is locked.
What Marathon’s Launch Means for the Extraction Shooter Landscape
Marathon is finally stepping out of the shadows with a concrete release date, a pre‑launch stress test, and a price tag that signals Bungie is aiming high. The extraction‑shooter space is brutal, competitive, and unforgiving — but if any studio knows how to build a long‑tail multiplayer ecosystem, it’s the one that kept Destiny alive through a decade of reinvention.
Whether Marathon becomes Bungie’s next big win or another cautionary tale remains to be seen. But for now, the countdown is officially on.
