Marathon’s piece de resistance Cryo Archive is finally here.
The endgame raid mode has been billed as an all-important addition to the Bungie first-person shooter, and it’s what we’ve been waiting for before filing our full PS5 review.
The mode was unlocked as part of an ongoing community ARG which was always planned to come to a conclusion ahead of today, 20th March.
You can watch a launch trailer narrated by the ever-present Ben Starr above, but if you’d like a little more information here’s the blurb:
“After poring over terminals, chasing coordinates, and collectively working through Marathon’s latest ARG, the community have pried open the first door to the UESC Marathon.
The zone is aboard the abandoned UESC Marathon and focuses on high‑intensity PvPvE combat, Vault chases, and risky extractions. It features six wings full of cryopods, medical bays, and storage areas, plus seven high‑security Vaults that offer top‑tier loot and unique weapons. Players must be Level 25, have all factions unlocked, and equip at least a 5,000 credit loadout.
There are also unique Codex rewards for players to earn for Cryo Archive progress, including styles (skins) for all six Runner shells, the Vidmaster title, and more.”
Marathon’s generally received a warm reception from players – we’re really enjoying it in our review in progress.
But it still remains to be seen whether it’s meeting Sony’s overall expectations.
While it only reveals a small portion of the overall picture, Steam concurrent player numbers for the game have been somewhat soft, and sales don’t look like they’ve been much stronger on console.
We’re still waiting for more concrete sales data from Bungie, of course, but it’ll be interesting to see how much Cryo Archive moves the needle for the game.