Is Bungie's Marathon Too Late? Former CEO SCEA Shawn Layden Warns of Extraction Shooter Fatigue

Marathon Could Be Hitting the Market Too Late, Fears Former PlayStation CEO

The extraction shooter genre has been hot as of late. However, are we beginning to see the fall of these larger titles as fatigue sets in? That’s the concern raised by former PlayStation CEO Shawn Layden when speaking about Bungie’s upcoming extraction shooter, Marathon, during an appearance on Theory Unlocked. Is Marathon arriving too late?

Layden reminisced about Bungie’s previous work, recalling when Marathon first launched for Mac users in the early 1990s. He noted that when Halo first launched and players saw this “new” team emerge, Bungie was not new at all. In fact, Halo was their fourth release, stating:

“They (Bungie) didn’t come out of the blue. They’re not an overnight sensation, and they’ve been building that type of game for a very, very long time. So, Marathon coming back is very nostalgic - it reminds me of 1993.”

Layden continued:

“But with all things, there is a season, and if you hit that timing right, you’re gold. Some of these shooters - and I think Marathon may fall into that category - are hitting the market at a time when there is fatigue and exhaustion.”

There is always an exception to the rule, and Arc Raiders has been one of those exceptions, though some players have begun to fall off even from Embark’s latest extraction shooter. While Arc Raiders remains one of the top titles currently thriving - alongside games like Escape From Tarkov - there has still been a noticeable drop in concurrent players. The initial rush of a new game has started to fade as players move on to other titles. With no shortage of new games on the horizon, the real challenge becomes keeping players engaged and coming back for more.

Will Bungie’s Marathon be able to do just that - keep players returning day after day and finally deliver a successful live-service experience on the PlayStation platform?

PlayStation’s push into live-service titles under former PlayStation and Sony CEO Jim Ryan has yet to generate much goodwill within the PlayStation community. Concord, which lasted only two weeks, vanished almost instantly after launch, and from the previously announced 12 ongoing projects, none have survived. Will Marathon finally be the turning point?

Let us know in the comments below if you think Marathon will be the ship that turns the tide.