Arc Raiders Design Director Says Running a Playtest Around the Same Time as Bungie's Marathon Was 'A Great A/B Test for Us'

The Arc Raiders plan manager has said it's been fortuitous timing to person its extraction shooter motorboat a playtest astir the aforesaid clip arsenic Bungie's Marathon, calling it "a large A/B trial for us."

With Marathon offering immoderate features that Arc Raiders does not — and vice-versa — Embark Studios' Virgil Watkins said it's been utile to comparison the feedback from not conscionable Arc Raiders' assemblage but besides Marathon's to "compare and opposition however immoderate of those things shook out."

Talking to PC Gamer, Watkins said: "It was precise coincidental that they had their trial astir the clip we did. To my knowledge, I don't deliberation immoderate of america knew that was going to happen. It was a precise large A/B trial for us, due to the fact that obviously, they made decisions that we didn't, and vice versa. So we could benignant of comparison and opposition however immoderate of those things shook out.

"[It] was rather absorbing to travel what players thought astir those definite things, oregon what did enactment successful their discourse and didn't, and what whitethorn person worked successful ours," helium added.

While Marathon playtests were disposable to conscionable a prime few, Watkin did accidental he'd seen capable to find the creation benignant "very evocative," adding helium was "personally funny to spot however that ends up. I anticipation to spot much of that successful the future."

Arc Raiders ended its 'Server Slam' playtest implicit the play with large subordinate numbers connected Steam, suggesting a beardown motorboat up of its October 30 merchandise date. It deed a highest concurrent subordinate number of 189,668, making it 1 of the most-played games connected Valve’s level implicit the play and the biggest extraction shooter ever connected Steam.

As for Marathon? The sci-fi extraction shooter is moving different invite-only method trial for players successful North America and Europe connected PS5, Xbox Series X and S, and Steam from October 22-28.

"This is an important checkpoint for america arsenic we trial our improvements since Alpha, including 3 maps, 5 runner shells, prox chat, re-tuned combat pacing, solo queue, deeper biology storytelling, and more," the Sony-owned workplace wrote. "That said, the Technical Test physique is simply a enactment successful advancement and volition lone see a information of what’s planned for Marathon’s afloat release, focused connected the aboriginal subordinate experience."

A nationalist update — 1 of the archetypal since Marathon's high-profile hold to an unspecified day — connected the shooter's improvement volition beryllium released "after the closed method test."

Marathon's antecedently planned September 23, 2025 merchandise day was scrapped pursuing "varied" feedback from players. “Through each remark and real-time speech connected societal media and Discord, your dependable has been beardown and clear,” Bungie said astatine the time. “We've taken this to heart, and we cognize we request much clip to trade Marathon into the crippled that genuinely reflects your passion. After overmuch treatment wrong our Dev team, we’ve made the determination to hold the September 23 release.”

Vikki Blake is simply a newsman for IGN, arsenic good arsenic a critic, columnist, and advisor with 15+ years acquisition moving with immoderate of the world's biggest gaming sites and publications. She's besides a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her astatine BlueSky.