Live Service Games Need to be Weird if They Want to Survive

The Marathon Server Slam has come and gone – a beefy four-day event that allowed players to enjoy the early game of what Marathon will have to offer on its full release. While Bungie's latest venture won't be a day one purchase for me, it has piqued my interest and shown me what it is about Marathon that gives me hope that it'll have a long life when compared to other live service titles out there – it looks weird.

I've heard a lot of different opinions on the aesthetics of Marathon, from people saying it looks like a "Roblox game" to a friend of mine saying the visuals from gameplay footage gave him a headache. One tweet (thank you Morgan Park for helping me not have to link back to the actual post – I hate Twitter) called it "the first ever fontslop game." From those I've spoken to that have actually played the game, whether it be through previous beta tests or the Server Slam, the verdict seems to be that Marathon is a beautiful game with striking visuals, and it's that sentiment that I'm inclined to share.

Marathon's graphic realism places it in a unique space, blending lush forests and drained swamps with blocky, colorful structures meant to provoke player interaction and pique interest. Not only are these settings eye-catching, but Bungie's level design proves itself the gold standard for first-person shooters, offering players a myriad of cover vantages, points of interest, and offering a deep level of strategy for players to get creative whether they're fighting UESC robots or other Runners. On top of this, the character design in this game is incredible at what it does. Each player inhabits a Shell, pretty much a character class aestheticized to fit the game. What I like about these Shells is that, in my opinion, they're visually designed to promote aggression. Yes, they carry the same aim-down-sights hunchback that most shooter characters have, but their designs are so dramatic and distinct. They communicate their utility well, on top of looking foreboding and like they inhabit this weird space between technology and biology (they do, according to the game's lore).

If we take a look at other live service games that are alive and kicking, there's a clear line of distinction regarding success equating to being able to stand out. The HoYoverse catalog boasts an interesting art style with loud, striking gameplay, paired with a simple UI. This allows for depth and accessibility, maintaining appeal for both whales and casual players. Helldivers II adds friction to the gameplay by having the narrative revolve around player impact for completing quests, as well as a multi-input system to use abilities like air strikes and supply drops that add to the tension of a high octane PvE environment. ARC Raiders, while visually familiar, is accessible to players and took major steps to innovate on the extraction shooter genre by emphasizing features like proximity chat. Not to mention the successes of the likes of legacy games like Fortnite, Apex Legends, Valorant, Overwatch, the list goes on.

In today's climate, live service is generally less well-received by both players and higher ups. Concord, Sony's massive, expensive live service shooter lasted less than a month. Highguard released in January and is shutting down later this month. Single player AAA games have a chance to come with battle passes and microtransactions. Being able to navigate in this space is a challenge that requires careful execution.

Marathon is still an extremely young game despite being built on a franchise from 1994 (although it hasn't had an entry in almost 40 years). At the moment, it stands to prove itself to players that it can stand amongst the rest in its genre and persist, but from what we've seen now, I think it'd be foolish to not be optimistic.

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