Marathon Server Slam lockar nästan 150 000 Peak-spelare på Steam under de första 24 timmarna

Bungie's Server Slam for Marathon drew a peak of 143,621 concurrent players on Steam alone within its first 24 hours, offering an early read on player interest ahead of the game's March 5 release.

The Server Slam is the final public beta for Bungie's sci-fi extraction shooter and runs free-to-play across Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox through March 2. The Steam figure, while notable, represents only a portion of total participation since console players are not reflected in that count.

The closest available comparison is Arc Raiders, whose final public beta reached an all-time peak of 189,668 concurrent players on Steam. That game launched last year and has become a reference point for extraction shooter performance. For Marathon to match or exceed Arc Raiders at launch, it would need to add roughly 46,000 players over its Server Slam weekend. Whether that happens will give a clearer sense of where the two titles stand relative to each other.

Arc Raiders did more than just perform well commercially. It pulled the extraction shooter subgenre into mainstream attention and built an engaged player base that other titles in the genre can now attempt to reach. Marathon is positioned to draw from that same audience, though its path to release has not been without complications.

Marathon development was significantly disrupted earlier this year when artist Antireal publicly identified their work appearing in the game's first closed beta in May 2025. Bungie investigated, confirmed the unauthorized use of Antireal's art, and faced a sharp drop in internal morale during the fallout. I think the resolution, announced by Antireal in December with a brief statement that the matter had been settled "to my satisfaction," likely helped stabilize the game's reputation enough to proceed toward launch. No public elaboration followed from either Antireal or Bungie's official channels, and speculation that the settlement included a formal agreement between the parties remains unverified.

The cinematic short director added friction of his own last month, posting and later deleting comments describing the plagiarism controversy as blown out of proportion while also rejecting claims that AI had been used in his work on the cinematic trailer.

Despite that background, the early reception to the Server Slam has been positive. Players have noted that Bungie's gunplay holds up, and the game's visual aesthetic, divisive in earlier builds, has found more traction in the current version. I see the updated build as a meaningful departure from what drew criticism in the initial beta, with Bungie having made substantial changes ahead of March 5.

The Server Slam closes on March 2. Players still undecided have several days to download and try the game before its full release.

Read also, if you're participating in the Server Slam and want to maximize your time in the beta, Bungie has tied cosmetic rewards and in-game gear caches to Runner Level progression during the event. All unlocked items will carry over into the full game at launch on March 5, with different reward tiers available at specific progression milestones.