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Marathon's Story Page
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Marathon's Story Page
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"Everything Is AWESOME!!!"
 Lego Marathon Dude by henchwife on tumblr. June 27, 2022. As every seven-year-old Marathon fan knows The Lego Movie (2014) is a retelling of the Marathon story. A story about "The Special" (Security Officer) who saves everyone from evil Lord Business (Admiral Tfear) and the world destroying "Kragle" (W'rkncacnter).  Lego Pfhor Fighters by henchwife on tumblr. July 21, 2022. Now thanks to henchwife (Nova Raschke), a Lego figures maker on tumblr, you can create your own Lego Marathon Story.  Lego Compilers by henchwife on tumblr. July 21, 2022.
 Lego Hulks by henchwife on tumblr. July 31, 2022.
 Lego Enforcers by henchwife on tumblr. July 31, 2022.
 Lego S'pht'kr by henchwife on tumblr. July 31, 2022. "Everything Is AWESOME!!!" That is... until the Duplo aliens (The Nar) arrive and threaten to destroy everything... again (Marathon 4, 5 and 6). Thankfully your best buddy Doom Guy is on hand to help you out!  Lego Marathon Dude and Doom Guy by henchwife on tumblr. July 8, 2022. Pew... pew... What did you get for Christmas? |
To be, or not to be: that is the question:  Bigtime by TychoVII on DeviantArt. December 22, 2007. Jeoku continues his in-depth playthrough of Marathon 2: Durandal with Slings & Arrows of Outrageous Fortune, the second level of the Lh'owon chapter. Sources in the video include:
 Letters to the Bungie Webmaster banner from 1996. Regarding the 26 seconds of silence on the "Jingle Bells" track on the Marathon 2 CD this is the original question to the Bungie Webmaster and the Webmaster's response from March 1997. Good morning oh he-who-controls-my-mind! That last part about dominating the universe was tempting but your feeble powers can never overcome my immense intellect. The only thing that can overcome it is the question of WHY THE FRIGGIN' HECK IS THE BLUE DANUBE 25 SECONDS INTO TRACK THREE OF THE INFINITY CD?And the Bungie Webmaster's reply: Funklord-Slings & Arrows of Outrageous Fortune introduces us to the F'lickta. They dislike you just as much as they dislike the Pfhor. Stay out of the ducts!  Flickta Sketch by AI-Joe (Travis Estrella) on DeviantArt. April 8, 2011. |
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Continuing our theme of celebrating Marathon art from around the world we give you...
Desert Flea Rider by Kirill Leonov, a concept artist from St Petersburg, Russia.  Desert Flea Rider by Kirill Leonov on ArtStation. June, 2023. Kirill Leonov writes: A creature-vehicle concept inspired by Bedouin aesthetics, Moebius, Marathon design, and stunning Darren Bartley tribal series.Created using Blender and Photoshop his images have a very nice retro futurism look to them. Flea riding... the only way to travel on the desert planet of Lh'owon.  Desert Flea Rider by Kirill Leonov on ArtStation. June, 2023. Check out Kirill Leonov's ArtStation page for more images of the Desert Flea Rider and his other artwork.  Desert Flea Rider by Kirill Leonov on ArtStation. June, 2023. |
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Staying on the theme of reinterpreting or revisualizing Marathon for a modern audience here is
a nice visual interpretation of the Final Screen in Marathon Infinity.
It's by comma_D, a digital artist on tumblr.  Marathon Infinity Final Screen by comma_D on tumblr. September 12, 2023. It's actually a truncated version of the Final Screen but focuses on the main theme within the text. Interesting to note that the Final Screen in Marathon Infinity comprises seven text segments. The last (the 7th) is of course... You are Destiny.
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Over on r/marathon
there is a nice implementation of the first terminal on the Marathon 2 level The Hard Stuff Rules...
in video format by _Corpor (aka Cookiepwee). You can see the YouTube video embedded below.
Apparently this was Cookiepwee's first attempt at something like this so a great first effort. Hopefully we will see more from her and @cherrysproutz. The video has a similar glitchy vibe as the UESC evidence files found during the Marathon ARG. Is this the future for Marathon terminals? Are the days of text based terminals that are hard to decipher underwater as your oxygen meter runs down over?  The future?  Marathon terminal by cherrysproutz on twitter.com. September 1, 2023. |
It's Friday!
 Durandal (Friday night) by Databuffer on twitter.com. September 23, 2023. Shortly after the Marathon announcement last year Databuffer, a popular robot artist, wrote on twitter.com : Started playing the original Marathon games, and im a bit obsessed with Durandal.Happens to the best of us. Since then he has created a roguish but likeable robotic character called Durandal and his ever faithful Security Officer.
His Durandal character is inspired by this bit in the Marathon Manual (page 13): Interfacing with the AIs is vital to obtaining information and planning objectives towards defeating the alien attack. Leela will be very helpful, but beware of the injured and malfunctional Durandal.Hence the shattered face plate and sarcastic, sometimes suggestive, attitude.  Durandal icon by Databuffer on tumblr. December 11, 2023. Databuffer's Durandal has gone on to inspire others to create their own fanart of his character. For example, juzo-kun below.  Durandal (Databuffer inspired) by juzo-kun on tumblr. September 26, 2023. Databuffer's content has an edgy vibe to it so if you are of a sensitive disposition you might be offended. Indeed his Tumblr page states that his content contains adult language, depictions of violence, blood and gore, and occasional suggestive themes. Sounds like Marathon! Since you have all rushed off to ogle his stuff... I'll stop typing now. |
The joy of speed. MARATHON.  While one does not necessarily associate a marathon with speed, the Marathon announcement trailer needed massive GPU power to render quickly. According to Raoul Marks (of Antibody TV) a lot of the Marathon trailer was rendered on @RenderToken (RNDR). RenderToken (RNDR) is a distributed GPU rendering network built on top of the Ethereum blockchain, aiming to connect artists and studios in need of GPU compute power with mining partners willing to rent their GPU capabilities out. Why use RenderToken rather than a bespoke renderfarm? Raoul Marks explains: ...essentially it's much cheaper, very fast, and good visibility as the job progresses . It's cheaper because it's using common users gpu nodes they've put on they network. It's distributed across hundreds of nodes this way and such can be super quick. The only downside as such is files needed to be converted to OrbX .. which has gotten much more robust recently. I'm sure there's still wrinkles but if your studio doesn't have a giant renderfarm and or you don't want to spend tens of thousands rendering and re rendering turns out it's a pretty unique service.So Bungie doesn't have a giant renderfarm in Iowa? But I digress. You can read an article on how Raoul Marks is using the Render Network in his production workflow, enabling him to create a wide range of work that has pushed the boundary of cinematic visual effects, cryptoart, and motion design. The Render Network have published a YouTube video with some of their 2023 highlights (including Marathon) delivered through their distributed GPU rendering network. What's next for the Render Network? AI GPUs apparently.  Consider yourself duly warned! |
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As they say in Marathon... (circumstances are cyclical)
That Marathon Symbol... again.  Alex Coolbell on Marathon Discord posted the above logo of his Internet Service Provider, Internode. This Australian ISP has been around since the 90s and their logo looks nothing like Bungie's Marathon symbol.  Internode's logo looks like a Marathon symbol inside a Marathon Symbol. MarathonTheGame being built inside a hollowed Marathon.  Confused? The creator of the original Marathon logo, J. Reginald Dujour, had this to say about his design: I designed the icon to represent a world within a world... Marathon the spaceship being build inside a hollowed asteroid.  UESC Marathon final concept art by Tom Hicks So what happened to the Marathon in Marathon? Well in the Marathon 2 Demo Durandal tells us... As for Tycho, he must have remained on the Marathon. Since the fool is hiding from me the fate and location of the Marathon, he must be up to something. I would surmise that the Pfhor have some plans for old Deimos; they bought the colony ship for sale.  UESC Marathon by Garrett Post on twitter.com. April 30, 2020. |
In comedy, timing is everything.
 I'm Back by juzo-kun on tumblr. July 16, 2017. This nicely executed series of panels by Marathon art humorist juzo-kun draws its inspiration from the first terminal on Fatum Iustum Stultorum and captures that 'moment' in the game in a humorous manner. At this point in Marathon 2 you have just spent the last seven levels helping Robert Blake and the rest of the Tau Ceti colonists activate the ancient S'pht AI (Thoth) before clearing out the Pfhor refueling ship Hfarl allowing them to escape the clutches of Durandal and return to Earth. For you... there is no escape! The Final Screen of Marathon 2 relates: Robert Blake and his men escaped the destruction of Lh'owon in the captured Pfhor refueling ship Hfarl, and returned to Earth. None of them ever questioned who had killed the crew before they boarded the vessel.Since the Hfarl was a FTL capable ship it would have arrived in the Sol system sometime on or shortly after 2811. Just missing the launch of the UESC Equanimity by fourteen years. What stories they could have told the good folks of Sol. Stories of a lone security officer who repulsed the Pfhor attack on the colony ship Marathon, uncovered and reawakened the fabled 11th clan of the S'pht and their ancient AI Thoth, rescued the stranded human survivors of Tau Ceti and halted the Pfhor advance on Earth. Fate twists and bends.  Tau Ceti IV by Karakter Design Studio on twitter.com. August 17, 2023.   |
So back on April 13, 2023 we highlighted the
importance of keeping notes whole playing Marathon.
 Marathon notes by DiscoAlchemist on r/marathon. April 11, 2023.  Marathon notes by DiscoAlchemist on r/marathon. April 11, 2023. Just don't over do it!  Well today we feature Neite, a French Marathon fan, who is documenting his experiences of new Marathon.  Marathon notes by Neite on Marathon Discord. January 21, 2024.  Marathon notes by Neite on Marathon Discord. January 21, 2024. Neite has also created a YouTube video for the French community showcasing Marathon entitled CE JEU EST-IL L'AVENIR DU FPS ?!?. Which translates to "IS THIS GAME THE FUTURE OF FPS ???". Switch on English subtitles if you can't speak French. He may also be doing a fan Marathon manga. A rasta Traxus Runner? Why not!  Marathon manga by Neite on Marathon Discord. January 21, 2024. |
I've been introducing them to the magic of orbital bombardment.  1980s Matra poster for Durandal missile posted by doctor-uchron99 on tumblr. July 13, 2023. Thanks to doctor-uchron99 for posting this 1980s advert from the French company Matra for their new runway smashing bomb... Durandal. The sword in the advert is of course Durandal, wielded by Count Roland and immortalised in the epic French poem The Song of Roland (French: La Chanson de Roland). Interesting to note that in the original French, Roland's sword is spelt 'Durendal' but Matra chose to use Durandal. Then again in the original French Roland is Rollant. In a long forgotten Inside Mac Games interview with Jason Jones in August 1999 during early Halo development, Jason was asked: IMG: Any particular reason for the Marathon logo, or is it just for kicks? Is Halo somehow tied to and/or an extension of the Marathon series?We will have to dig that interview out of the Story page archives at some stage to give you the full story. Oh wait you want it now? Well it's already on the Story page... here. Amazing right! To quote Arthur C. Clarke: Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.
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Cause I got a shotgun, and you ain't got one.Yeah! But I have a... BIG sword!  Marathon's Security Officer with sword by epicdivorce on tumblr. July 2, 2022. This nicely composed rendition of the Marathon's Security Officer with sword (Durandal) is by epicdivorce on tumblr. The image was simply entitled "for @quantumcola" who is a big Marathon fan based on their home page. What struck me about the image, apart from the sword, was how it stirred a memory of another image. Oddly, this is familiar to you, as if it were from an old dream, but you can't exactly remember... |
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A lone Poly stirs the kwalt... and dreams of a better life. A haunting image from a failed timeline. |
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The whole guns akimbo piece last Sunday started off another round of... "who was first?".
Bungie Software or Apogee Software? Marathon or Rise of the Triad? Both were released on the same day and both had akimbo pistols.
So folks compare release times, time zones, Texas versus Illinois, shareware versus full retail game, best implementation, reloading and what happens when you add a second magnum to the Marathon Demo. Then your head explodes!  Wacky crossover by juzo-kun on tumblr. July 17, 2016. The above piece of artwork is by everyone's favorite Marathon art humorist juzo-kun. This Italian lady has been a Deviant for 19 years! Her Marathon portfolio is extensive and it's hard to pick a favorite piece. But the above image is one of them. Concerning the piece juzo-kun wrote: Another old one! The humanized version of The Fallen from Transformer (comic version rather than movie), and Mr. Security Officer from Marathon. Yes, I have a thing for wacky crossovers, should be obvious by now :PWe mentioned her humorous Marathon/Transformers crossover comic back on July 23, 2022. Finding all her public artwork is not easy as it is distributed across a number of sites. But that's the Marathon way! Her opening description of Marathon Infinity is one of the best! Translating her native Italian she writes: Logic assumes that the third part should tell a story consequent to that of the second. And so it seems, at least until various clues first mess up our heads and life (literally) and then slowly make us guess that what is happening to us is happening to us 'instead'.Think about it. |
So as through a glass, and darkly On a 'day of days' ThousandMasks posted this epic shattered refection of self.  I am hero by ThousandMasks on twitter.com. September 11, 2022. Along with the image ThousandMasks wrote: I have been Roland, Beowulf, Achilles, Gilgamesh.This of course is from the cryptic terminal on Kill Your Television (aka the Unformatted KYT Term. Message). While the original terminal message is unformatted and missing some text Jason Jones did provide a formatted and fuller version of the text after the game was released. It gives a different slant to the in-game interpretation. I am a heroCommenting on the text Jason Jones wrote: if this doesn't peg your weirdo-detector, nothing will <grin>It has pegged many weirdo-detectors since then. But back to General George S. Patton and his poem Through a Glass, Darkly. Patton believed in the concept of reincarnation and that he had been a soldier in previous lives. His poem refers to a number of these past lives. There is a classic scene in the 1970 film Patton where George C Scott (playing Patton) recalls a battle from 2000 years ago. The haunting track played during this scene is by Jerry Goldsmith and is entitled "The Battle Ground". One wonders if Jason Jones, like George Patton, believes in reincarnation?  Jason Jones (right), Luke Smith (left) | Image courtesy Bungie. |
Sometimes the simplest of things can bring a smile to your face.
 Want anything? by c-53 on tumblr. July 10, 2023 The answer is of course... a Cornetto. If you haven't seen the Cornetto Trilogy then this joke has gone over your head.  But I digress. Staying on the subject of the UESC Marathon. Some time ago lastlabyrinth (aka J) on tumblr created a very nice piece of artwork using the cryptic Gheritt White temrinal as inspiration. She entitled the piece...  Strangling hands by lastlabyrinth on tumblr. September 14, 2017. I will leave you to ponder this image and its intent. As Leela said... Welcome to the Marathon. |
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Back on Jan 1, 2024 I mentioned the 2023 Freak List.
Marathon things that freaked me out in 2023
Since then I have had people ask me... "What else is on the freak list?" or "My artwork better not be on your list, mate." Now don't get me wrong, being on the Freak List is not a BAD thing, it's a GOOD thing. It made me look not once, not twice, but thrice! It made me go... WTF and stare! So without further ado here is #2 on my 2023 Freak List.  Marathon gore by redorth on tumblr. May 27, 2023 Artwork by redorth on tumblr. Redorth never gave this piece a title only a series of hashtags #Marathon #art #digital art #gore #digitalart. So I have called it Marathon gore. The first thing that will strike you about this image is the tilted perspective throwing you off balance. The second thing is... WTF is that THING! Is that thing... human? Now a few of you will no doubt point out that this was posted several days after the Marathon announcement and perhaps represents the artist's feelings at the time. But only redorth knows for sure and he's not saying. Make your own mind up. Lastly, redorth's image has a transparent background so it looks great on anything! |
Pepe Silvia writes:
"Check this out, take a look at this."  Deepest Lore by commandertilio on tumblr. August 28, 2022 Inspired by the TV series "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" and the episode "Sweet Dee Has a Heart Attack" (air date October 30, 2008) commandertilio recreates Charlie Kelly's 'crazy wall' in Destiny style! He captioned the piece *reads Marathon lore once* and added... #deepest loreAnd if you read Marathon lore twice...  Marathon Iceberg by orihaus. April 2, 2021. Escape will make you God... or somerthing! |
"Give a guy a gun, he thinks he's Superman. Give him two and he thinks he's God."Guns Akimbo. In first-person shooters the term 'akimbo' is a subset of dual-wielding where the weapons in the hands of the player character are the same. In Marathon (1994) it was possible to akimbo the .45 Magnums. In the hands of a seasoned player akimbo magnums are highly effective.  United by braunhauser on r/marathon. October 29, 2017 The above sketch is by braunhauser and shows the Marathon's security officer with akimbo magnums. The sketch was one of 31 that braunhauser did for Inktober 2017. A marathon of Marathon sketches. One every day during October. On the final day he wrote: It's been one roller coaster of a month, lads. Fast forward to Marathon 2: Durandal (1995) and Bungie gave us akimbo shotguns. BOOM! Carnage just got real!  MJOLNIR Recon 54 by The Count of S on twitter.com. July 6, 2023 The above sketch is by The Count of S and shows Mjolnir Recon 54 with akimbo shotguns. The sketch was one of four the Count did in July 2023. You can see all four sketches together on tumblr. Fast forward to Marathon Infinity (1996) and we got the flechette... but not akimbo flechettes. This did not stop artist John Wallin Liberto giving the security officer akimbo flechettes. aka... Whirling Death Spike's.  Marathon by John Wallin Liberto This excellent piece of artwork dates back to at least 2002 and may be earlier. It was originally available from John's website at www.johnwallin.net . But it is not there anymore nor does it feature on John's ArtStation, twitter.com, Facebook, or Instagram pages. The largest version I have archived is only 800 x 600 pixels. Perhaps a larger version will surface one day. It deserves to be seen in hi-res.
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And now for something completely different.
Durandal like you have never seen him before. BWOOOM (aka Gaby) recreates the famous trap terminal (aka I have a shotgun) on Blaspheme Quarantine in an innovative comic form. Check out those expressions and subtle memes. Cheese trap anyone? 
Epic. Love the little heart. Love and kisses, Durandal. ♥ ♥ As a bonus BWOOOM recreated Durandal's secret terminal (aka living in a box) on The Rose. The one where he reveals that he called the Pfhor to the Marathon.  Durandal (Blaspheme Quarantine) by BWOOOM (@bwooomscratches) on tumblr. December 12, 2023 Will we see more? Well BWOOOM did recreate all 3 Marathon AIs in comic form and wrote: my designs for the ai from marathon :-] intentionally rly simple. im picturing them just showing up on screens as still images they flip between as u go thru the terminal logs  Leela, Durandal & Tycho by BWOOOM (@bwooomscratches) on tumblr. December 9, 2023  Leela, Durandal & Tycho by BWOOOM (@bwooomscratches) on tumblr. December 9, 2023 Poor Leela. Loving Tycho the Psycho. For more artwork by BWOOOM check out BWOOOM's Art Blog on tumblr or BWOOOM Art! on twitter.com. |
"Did he fire eight shots or only seven?"  Old Marathon Sketch by LocustTheSpawn on twitter.com. January 11, 2024 Another excellent piece of Marathon art from LocustTheSpawn showing the Security Officer using his trusty .44 Magnum Mega Class A1. LocustTheSpawn writes: Old Marathon Sketch from the depths of my hard driveCheck out that background. What other Marathon treasures like buried in LocustTheSpawn's hard drive?
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 What happens in Marathon Infinity? I get asked this a lot. So you've played Marathon Infinity. Your head is spinning. Your fist is pounding a door that will not open. Your every step could be your final one, standing on the edge of destruction. And the voices in your head scream out... "whose side are you on?" Everyone has their own story... their own nightmare. Here is just one...  Marathon Infinity by c-53 on tumblr. June 19, 2023 The author of this harrowing tale is c-53 on tumblr. Their tagline is You Should Play Marathon (1994) . Note that it does not say... You Should Play Marathon Infinity (1996). To be fair Bungie did warn us of the dangers of playing Marathon Infinity.  Autopsy ad for Marathon Infinity by Bungie 1996 The date on this seven page autopsy report (March '96) predates the release of Marathon Infinity (October '96) by seven months. So this death occurred in another timeline just not the one you are in... yet! Welcome to Marathon Infinity. You can check out any time you like. But you can never leave! Marathoners Anonymous would like to point our that if you need help after playing Marathon Infinity there is a seat here for you... beside Hamish.  |
The adventure continues...
 Jeoku continues his in-depth video playthroughs of the Marathon Trilogy with Marathon 2: Durandal.  Monkey Boy ad for Marathon 2: Durandal by Bungie 1996 The video is wide ranging and discusses the development of Marathon 2, the changes made from the first game, the Marathon 2 Preview, the Marathon 2 Demo, a walkthrough of the first level Waterloo Waterpark and the changes made to this level in the Windows version of Marathon 2. The whole shebang and kitchen sink weighs in at just over an hour long (and just my luck I'm all out of popcorn). Sources in the video include:
The exit corridor on Waterloo Waterpark like you've never seen it before by SoldierOfPeace510. Punch that switch and you are out.  Waterloo Waterpark by SoldierOfPeace510 on r/marathon. September 4, 2022 SoldierOfPeace510 used some old school tools to create this image. He wrote: Export Marathon map using an old OS9 tool, texture and render and add geometry in Bryce 7The result is a very nice image that makes you feel like you are actually there! |
Hooded S'pht.
 S'pht by Jake Myler (@jakemyler) on tumblr. January 6, 2024 The above is an evocative piece of Marathon art by Jake Myler (aka Midnight Mirror) on tumblr. It offers a different slant to the traditional S'pht appearance and is no doubt inspired by the new Marathon concept art for the S'pht.  Marathon concept art posted by Christopher Barrett (@oryxeleven) on twitter.com. May 24, 2023. This new S'pht look has a Batman-like vibe going on.   
But I digress. Jake Myler is a comic book & video game maker living in Seattle, Washigton. He publishes a humorous Destiny-related webcomic entitled Watermelon Exo. Inspired by the Marathon announcement Jake did the inevitable Watermelon Exo meets Marathon the Extraction Shooter comic.  Watermelon Exo/Marathon by Jake Myler (@jakemyler) on tumblr. July 6, 2023 Jake writes: Oh I guess this page brings us into the newer age of Watermelon Exo where he realizes Marathon is the game he's been waiting for haha.Jake posted a second image of Watermelon Exo as a Marathon Runner. Note the hooded S'pht in the background.  Watermelon Exo/Marathon by Jake Myler (@jakemyler) on tumblr. July 6, 2023 Looking forward to seeing more Marathon inspired Watermelon Exo. Want to know about Jake's work then check out his seven pages... yes seven! |
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Got Wallpaper?
bienbuenobuen created a very nice set of high quality Marathon wallpapers and banners blending together a number of the officially released CG stills from the Marathon announcement. They were originally posted to tumblr and later to twitter.com . You can also see them below.  Marathon wallpaper by @bienbuenobuen on tumblr. June 15, 2023  Marathon wallpaper by @bienbuenobuen on tumblr. June 15, 2023  Marathon wallpaper by @bienbuenobuen on tumblr. June 15, 2023  Marathon wallpaper by @bienbuenobuen on tumblr. June 15, 2023 |
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It's not everyday that you come across a piece of Marathon art that makes you think.
The Marathon sketch below by mushroompuzzle, entitled 'light at the end', is one of those pieces.  light at the end by mushroompuzzle on tumblr. September 13, 2023 mushroompuzzle writes: i love the chapter screen where he has the little backpack. so he gets it hereThe backpack reference is from the Citadel chapter screen by Craig Mullins. mushroompuzzle's 'light at the end' has an Escher-like feel to it evoking memories of Marathon Infinity where the player has two paths and choices to make about which terminal to take. So the next time someone asks you what Marathon Infinity is all about show them this sketch. You can check out more of mushroompuzzle's work on tumblr . |
Shortly after the Marathon announcement last year LIAM_RRT, a Source Filmmaker, Blender, and
traditional artist specialising in armor and character design, wrote on twitter.com:
With Marathon being announced recently I felt compelled to make some artwork inspired by it!The result was an excellent array of images blending the Mirage IIC core from Halo Infinite and Marathon.
When he was finished he wrote: Only after I finished did I realize that I made 7 of these, which is kinda neat, cuz Bungie, ya knowAh Bungie and the mysterious number seven. Bungie's use of the number seven dates way back and became very evident in Marathon. Richard Moss in his book The Secret History of Mac Gaming: Expanded Edition tried to get to the bottom of the mystery by going to the source. You can read the specific section in his book below: |
Nice to see Craig Mullins post some science fiction concept art on twitter.com .
 Concept art by Craig Mullins on twitter.com. December 12, 2023 No not Marathon. Craig wrote: design for a prison cell, for a project that went nowhere. Again, 80's tech vibe. This was all eventually modeled for green screen, and I got to art direct! My one moment in the sun.He went on to post another piece from the cancelled project.  Concept art by Craig Mullins on twitter.com. December 15, 2023 Craig wrote: View from outside, before the more interesting door design. Bad/good guys blew the door in the story. Yes, guards were techie Samurai. One of my pet peeves is those yellow/black warning stripes. just say no, but it is a part of this aesthetic.While the images are not Marathon-related it makes you think what the UESC Marathon would look like after the Pfhor attack. When the Pfhor returned in force three months after the initial attack they captured the Marathon and dismantled the remaining AIs Tycho and Leela. It is likely they did a Ferengi on the ship stripping it of all valuable assets leaving it derelict in space. A massive ghost ship hanging in low orbit over Tau Ceti IV. So perhaps Craig's images are not so far off the mark for how the Marathon might look complete with yellow/black warning stripes. You can see how Craig actually envisaged the Marathon during the initial attack in his early fan based art most notably the Compiler and the Marathon Marine images.
You can see more of Craig's Marathon art in The Marathon Art of Craig Mullins section |
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Of the UESC Marathon's three AIs only one is depicted in visual form in the game.
The opening screen of the Durandal Chapter depicts a sword and a green human-like image.  One of the best is by Arne Niklas Jansson (androidarts.com)  Durandal by Arne Niklas Jansson on the androidarts.com. January 16, 2022. While staying true to the original image it is given a Philippe Druillet type feel to it. Arne is no stranger to Marathon and Bungie. He was commissioned by Bungie to draw a Marathon poster for their 20th anniversary celebration in 2011. It was a limited edition run of 100 pieces (size 16 inches x 22 inches).  Marathon poster owned and framed by tychovii on r/marathon. March 20, 2013 tychovii, the owner of the above framed version of the poster, wrote: When I saw this in the store I was torn between my money and this masterpiece. I broke down and got it, then bought a nice frame for it. Now whenever I look at it I can only describe my feelings as being the opposite of buyer's remorse. I love this damn thing. It inspires me to be creative and to remember my mac gaming roots, and of course how great a game Marathon was. |
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Shortly after the Marathon announcement in May of last year shark on the Marathon Discord
posted a series of poster-style images using both old and new Marathon assets.
You can see the first below.  Marathon poster by shark on the Marathon Discord>. June 1, 2023. Shark wrote: that insane lime-green colour is starting to grow on me fast.He went on to create two other Marathon poster-style images, standard and a 'wavy' variant.
Shark is also one of those hardcore fans who got a Marathon-related tattoo.  Marathon tattoo by shark on Marathon Discord. June 19, 2022. Shark wrote: got a new tattoo today; a daily reminder that, no matter how bad things get (even if the timeline I'm in is currently fucked and the W'rkncacnter is basically already on the cusp of release), I've still got more switches to punch and vent cores to frog-blast.Marathon fans will recognise the Latin motto Ne Cede Malis as the title of the first level in Marathon Infinity and means - Don't Give in to Misfortune. More details about the name and the level can be found in the Level Credits section. On the subject of tattoos who remembers THAT other Ne Cede Malis tattoo? You know... the one you downloaded and used as a wallpaper until your Mom saw it! "Hey Greg."You did download it right? |
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Continuing our theme of celebrating Marathon art from around the world we give you...
Rebellion by 810-Dude from Puebla, Mexico.  Rebellion chapter screen by 810-Dude on twitter.com. Jan 20, 2023. This version of Rebellion isn't even the final version but it is the one that caught my eye. It has that edgy vibe reminiscent of the work of Howard Chaykin. Straight lines, square jaws.  810-Dude (aka Yael Rojas) is no stranger to the Story page. We have featured his perhaps most famous piece - Bungie's Mos Eisley Spaceport - back October 19, 2023. A wretched hive of scum and villainy that very few Bungie fans have been able to identify fully. But I digress. 810-Dude went on to update his Rebellion chapter screen for Bungie Day (July 7, 2023) but this version has a more traditional rounded look.  Rebellion chapter screen by 810-Dude on twitter.com. July 7, 2023. You can see the final version as his Rebellion chapter screen remake below.  Rebellion chapter screen by 810-Dude on twitter.com. July 10, 2023. Check out more of 810-Dude's Marathon artwork on ArtStation, DeviantArt and twitter.com. |
 Marathon's Director Christopher Barrett (Oryx) on Marathon Discord . May 27, 2023. Time in GMT. Happy New Year to Marathon's Story page readers... Everywhere! And what a year 2023 was... Hopefully you all exfilled in peace! New Year is a time for making lists. Top of my list of Marathon things that freaked me out in 2023 was an animated piece by Kanako (not to be confused with Konoko). Kanako posted it on the Marathon Discord on May 30th shortly after the Marathon announcement. It was subtitled... No doubt inspired by Emily Katske (Animation Lead on Marathon) and the Somewhere In The Heavens - ViDoc with all its talk about downing people but then letting them go and exfil in peace. However I swear if I have another dream of Emily Katske turning into Matt Soell handing me a hippo...  Matt Soell and hippo captured on the Bungie webcam. Happy 2024. Hope all your exfils will be in peace! Apologies to Emily Katske, Matt Soell, and Kanako. Day 1, the rest of 2024 can only get better... right? "Hey! Wait. What was #2." |
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Last updated Jan 31, 2024