PvPvE gameplay has been one of the most controversial designs since the launch of Marathon. Some people like the tension of being attacked by other players at any time, but many players say that they have been sent back to the lobby by other teams before they understand the map mechanism.
Now Bungie seems to have finally decided to give another group of players a choice. According to the latest official development update, “Marathon” is about to launch a new mode called “Vault Breaker”. This is also the first gameplay mode completely focused on PvE experience since the game was launched. Players no longer need to worry about hostile players popping up from corners to grab loot, but can focus on facing AI enemies, exploring maps and challenging levels.
Designed specifically for lone wolf players!
Unlike existing modes, “Vault Breaker” is specifically designed for single-player players. Bungie stated that this mode will be set in the Cryo Archive area. Players need to gradually overcome different levels of Vault challenges and strengthen their abilities by collecting special resources “Vault Data”. The most important thing is that this growth system will be different from the main game mode. In other words, after players enter here, they don’t have to worry about being crushed by high-end players, nor do they have to keep their nerves tense all the time in order to compete for resources. For many players who have long complained that the threshold of “Marathon” is too high, this can almost be said to be the friendliest change since the game was launched.
Bungie actually discovered the problem early on
In fact, this update is not a sudden decision. As early as Season 2, Bungie launched a milder “Sponsored Survival” mode to try to reduce the pressure caused by PvP. At that time, many players believed that the biggest advantage of “Marathon” was actually the shooting feel and world view, rather than the high-pressure competition itself. As the number of players fluctuates and community feedback continues to accumulate, Bungie has obviously begun to realize that not everyone wants to open the game after get off work and be educated by experts. Some players just want to have fun exploring, collecting, and cooperating without experiencing psychological trauma every five minutes.
Perhaps what players want most has never been more PvP!
Interestingly, after the news was made public, the response from the community was almost even more enthusiastic than the new weapons and new maps! Many extraction shooters in the past have fallen into the same problem. The development team continues to add weapons and system depth, but players who really leave are often not because there is too little content, but because there is too much pressure. For many people, what they get after a game is not a sense of accomplishment, but an increase in blood pressure.
Therefore, when Bungie announced the launch of pure PvE gameplay, the first reaction of many players was not to question, but to simply say: “Why not do it earlier?” Perhaps for “Marathon”, the real problem that needs to be solved is never the lack of content, but to make more players willing to stay and experience the content.