Marathon Season 2 Starts June 2 With Night Map, Progress Wipe, and Free Open Play Week

Marathon Season 2, Nightfall, starts June 2, and Bungie is pairing the seasonal reset with a free Open Play week on Steam, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5. The trial runs June 2-9, with progress carrying over if players decide to buy the game afterward.

As usual for Marathon’s seasonal structure, progression is being wiped at the start of the new season. Bungie says Nightfall is built around “escalation,” with the UESC increasing its presence on Tau Ceti IV and the Anomaly behaving differently after dark, according to the official post.

The headline addition is Dire Marsh (Night), a darker version of the map with changed routes, blocked sightlines, new enemies, and light-based mechanics. Players get a flashlight, but using it isn’t free safety. Light can draw danger, so moving through the zone should play slower than the daytime version.

Bungie is also adding gear built around visibility and risk. Vector rounds leave lit spots where shots land, while Darksight scopes, signal flares, and Vector grenades give players more ways to handle the darkness. Anyone who completed a daytime Dire Marsh run last season will have both versions unlocked when Season 2 begins. Everyone else unlocks them at level 3.

Nightfall also brings a new Runner Shell called Sentinel, focused on defense and area control. Its Prime ability, Defender System, deploys an automated laser platform with limited charges that can intercept incoming grenades and missiles, while also improving weapon handling for nearby allies.

Other changes include two new weapons, weapon rarity adjustments, implant improvements, and The Cradle, a new system for upgrading Runner Shell stats. Cryo Archive is also returning during the season, with Bungie saying it will rotate back in on June 11.