One of the greatest shames of FPS history is how the Marathon series passed so many of us by, especially if we were busy with our Pentiums, 486’s, and our IBM-Compatibles. While in 1996 we did have Quake, Terra Nova, Strife, Duke Nukem 3D, and of course, Chex Quest, us PC owners never really got to see Bungie’s formative years play out. That’s finally fixed, with Classic Marathon Infinity rounding out the trilogy on Steam – and you can get it for free.
The first two Marathon games have already made their appearances on Steam, with the first game and Marathon 2 already receiving fan-led source ports that have made them accessible to modern PCs. The FPS game series can now be played from beginning to end, which will help anyone interested in seeing where the formative ideas behind Halo come from. Now it’s Marathon Infinity’s turn, which is the most expansive and ambitious game in the series.
It’s important to remember, if you’re going to dive in, that the ‘90s were an experimental time and that’s incredibly evident in Marathon Infinity. It has a dream-like approach to how it gives players the details of what’s happening, complete with alternate realities. It also marks the return of rogue AI Durandal, who plays the part of ally and enemy depending on where the player is in the narrative. There’s even a degree of nonlinearity to the game, with some critical decisions that can lead to different levels. While that’s something you might expect to see today, for 1996 it was absolutely wild.
Now there’s no excuse not to dive in and give the game a try, especially if you’ve got an interest in Halo and want to explore more in the way of rampant AIs and portentously-named concepts. Classic Marathon Infinity is out now on Steam and you can play for free thanks to the fans behind the Aleph One project. Head over here to grab it for yourself, and experience this critical moment in Bungie’s history.
In addition you can also keep an eye on the upcoming new re-imagined version with our guide to the Marathon release date, as well as our picks for the best classic games you can still play on PC.
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