Marathon Patch Notes: Bungie Nerfs Thermal Scopes, Improves Audio, and Updates Rook Class

Marathon got its first major patch today, and while we highlighted a few of the changes Bungie had teased, such as more ammo in the free sponsored kits, and changes to the Lux bundles, the game also got some decent quality-of-life fixes as well.

In addition to the previously mentioned ammo counts being increased and the number of med cabinets and munitions cabinets that spawn on Perimeter have been increased, players can spot objectives from 20 meters away instead of 10 meters.

We also got some balance to the audio design, thermal scores, and some changes for the Rook class. As with any FPS game, audio is king, and with the update, you can now hear gunfire and explosions from farther away than you could previously, which could lead to a lot more action when fighting Runners or UESC bots.

Thermal scopes, on the other hand, ate a much needed nerf, as Bungie has made it slightly more difficult to see enemies in thermal scopes and reduced the range at which they can spot enemies. The range depends on the gun type you have the scope equipped for and goes as follows:

Pistols are down from 55 meters to 40m, the range for Rifles/LMGs/SMGs is down from 65m to 60m, the Precision Rifle range is down from 100m to 80m, and the Sniper Rifle range is down from 180m to 100m.

The Rook class, which is meant to be used for dedicated solo runs without risking your own gear, got some changes. You will get more CyberAcme reputation XP when you extract as a Rook, and the same reputation bonuses that solo players who exfil as one of the core six Runner shells. The nerf though is that the Rook’s WSTR Shotgun is now a Compromised weapon, meaning you will need to use a Matter Fixative to exfil with it, or you will lose it even after a successful exfil.

Bungie is also adding more rewards soon to the battle pass, in response to players claiming that both the paid and free versions of the pass were lacking in rewards. These will go live sometime in April, so players will still need to wait a bit but it's nice to see Bungie quickly responding to player feedback. 

Have you checked out Marathon yet? Do you think Bungie is going to nail the live service model? Let us know in the comments and come hang out in the GamerzTheory Discord with us.