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The upcoming sci-fi extraction shooter, Bungie's highly-anticipated project, has made a reappearance with the news of a closed technical test scheduled to begin in October.

A Rocky Development Journey

First announced during the 2023 PlayStation Showcase, the game has experienced a bumpy creation process. In October 2024, Bungie announced plans were to begin alpha testing during the coming year. A period of silence followed, until the game was re-revealed in April with a planned September release. However, after some playtests resulted in mixed reactions, the studio announced in June that it was postponing the game's launch.

Avoiding Past Mistakes

Though the title has already seen its portion of controversies, Bungie appears committed to ensure their project avoids the same outcome as other games. Currently, it seems the game's development is finally getting back on track, as they just revealed that it has run "several closed playtests to collect player input on Marathon" since June of this year. The developer is opening the doors a bit wider, enabling more players to catch a glimpse of the game via an forthcoming "closed technical test."

Exclusive Testing Information

Considering it's a private technical test, it's understandably limited access than, say, an public test. To gain access in the exclusive trial — which takes place between Oct. 22 at 10 a.m. PDT to October 28th — players must satisfy the listed requirements:

• Submit an application via their platform
• Reside in Europe or North America
• Have access to a PS5, Xbox console, or Windows PC (minimum PC specs include an compatible CPU, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti GPU, and 8GB RAM)
• Participate in their community platform
• Sign an NDA via the online community

How to Apply

Registration is currently available, and to be eligible for the private trial, players must complete registration by Oct. 16 at 4 p.m. PDT. Players on Windows PC can also submit their application via the digital platform starting on October 13th, with Steam applications due by October 26th. Bungie will notify players who qualify and inform them of the next steps.

"This represents a crucial milestone for us as we test our improvements since the game's Alpha, including multiple locations, several character options, proximity communication, re-tuned combat pacing, solo queue, enhanced narrative elements, and additional features," Bungie stated. "That said, the Technical Test build is a work in progress and will only include a portion of what's planned for the game's full release, concentrating on the early player experience."

Further Details

More info about the technical test and the actual experience can be found on the game's help page. But for players who aren't selected for the trial (or cannot participate), there's positive developments: Bungie says a public update on the state of the game is the following item on the schedule once the trial concludes.

"There will be a comprehensive report on the game's progress in the coming months after the Closed Technical Test!" The studio shared.