Constructive Feedback on Marathon: TTK Balance, Third-Parties, and Map Ambience

Hi Team,

First of all, I want to thank you for creating such a wonderful game. I am thoroughly enjoying it—especially the missions, the PvP, the visuals, and the overall mechanics. I’m incredibly excited about where this game is heading. However, no game is perfect, and I wanted to share my perspective on a few areas where I believe it could improve. I have extensive experience with extraction shooters, particularly Warzone's DMZ and Arc Raiders, so I would like to highlight a few points that I believe deserve a closer look.

1. The TTK vs. Movement Disconnect
Don't get me wrong: I think the game's TTK (Time to Kill) is excellent in isolation. The real issue is "how equipped the player is to handle a fast death." Consider this scenario: while looting, an enemy catches me off guard from behind and I die in 1.5 seconds. The death itself isn't the issue; the issue is the lack of a viable counter-play or defensive response. The character simply doesn't move fast enough to react and escape within that sub-1-second window. In other words, the core movement speed feels misaligned with the current TTK.

I believe that if the current "sprint" speed (activated by pressing L3 on the DualSense) became the standard baseline movement speed—without triggering a overheat penalty—it would solve this problem. It would grant enough velocity to escape certain death or survive being ambushed. This adjustment would balance encounters, speed up the looting flow, and allow players to disengage from PvE robot waves more effectively. I understand this might introduce trade-offs, like players rotating faster for a third-party cleanup, which brings me to my next point.

2. Mitigating the Exhaustion of Third-Party Encounters
With every match, I notice how draining third-party fights can be. I have lost incredible loot because right in the middle of a firefight with robots or other Runners, a third squad blindsides us, catching us completely out of ammo, health kits, and shield plates. The team needs to evaluate this dynamic and implement a strategy to compensate players during multi-team engagements.

My suggestion is to increase the amount of ammunition dropped by standard robots. However, instead of making it completely RNG/random ammo, they should drop a small ammo pouch (not a heavy ammo box) that dynamically grants ammunition for the specific weapon type the player currently has equipped. This would ensure we aren't left entirely defenseless during a third-party push.

The same logic should apply to healing and shields—robots should drop materials that allow for quick replenishment. If we are rushing through an extraction and find ourselves low on resources, knowing we can engage PvE enemies to quickly restock would be a game-changer. It would balance the high TTK, alleviate the pressure of third-parties, and make fighting elite or boss robots viable without the constant fear of running entirely out of utility for the next PvP fight.

Note on Points 1 & 2: There will always be the issue of facing a "hyper-geared Runner" with legendary shields and fully kitted weapons. When facing them, your only real option is to flee or outsmart them. Because of this, ammo, health, shields, and fast movement are the definitive key pillars of survival—especially for players who load into a match purely to progress missions rather than hunt for PvP. This is even more critical considering that more robots will reportedly be added across various areas of the map in Season 2.

3. Mission Structure & Progression Flow
The mission design itself feels incredibly satisfying to play. However, limiting players to only 1 active mission per deployment leaves seasoned players with a bit of a downtime loop.

My recommendation is to implement a dual-tier contract system: allowing players to track a Main Faction Mission alongside a Daily Faction Bounty, with the ability to progress both during a single deployment. Since daily bounties are usually straightforward, it would feel highly rewarding to knock them out passively while pursuing a primary objective, even if the dailies grant a lower amount of XP.

4. Environmental Diversity & Map Ambience
I truly appreciate the team's effort in designing strategic lanes, and the visual aesthetic of the game is beautiful. However, the environmental differentiation between map zones currently feels too subtle. Even if distinct zones exist conceptually, players aren't actively feeling or seeing them during gameplay.

I understand Tau Ceti IV is canonically a desert-like planet, so we don't expect lush biomes and thriving wildlife. Games like Elden Ring or The Legend of Zelda capture attention because every time you step into a new region, it feels like an entirely new world. While implementing traditional snow forests or tropical biomes might conflict with the lore, you can still create radical environmental shifts through artificial or industrial set pieces.

For example, look at the Perimeter map. When moving between points of interest, we know we are technically somewhere else, but visually, it all blends together. Imagine if a section of the map was drastically altered into a "Runner's Boneyard/Scrap Heap"—a literal junkyard piled high with the discarded "corpses" of old Runners, containing only Tier 1 (white) loot. The sheer atmosphere would make players pause and say, "What happened here?"—and that curiosity drives engagement.

Other ideas could include:

An abandoned shantytown/slum once occupied by refugees or survivors.

A toxic chemical spill zone that completely alters the area's palette with vibrant bioluminescence.

Pitch-black sectors with zero ambient lighting that force players to rely entirely on night vision or flashlights, increasing the tension required to find rare loot.

Intricate, claustrophobic industrial labyrinths that challenge navigation but offer high-tier rewards at the center.

Drastically altering the visual and atmospheric tone as you cross borders would instantly give players that intoxicating feeling of discovering "something new or alien."

On a side note: despite all the community complaints online, I want to clarify that I absolutely love the HUD. I think it looks amazing! I know that since the game needs to be commercially successful, it might get tweaked, but I wanted to make sure my praise for it was heard.

Overall, thank you so much for your hard work. Please keep fighting for this game and do not let it get canceled. It is incredibly good and has a massive future ahead of it. Block out the toxic noise and focus on refining the core experience. Don't fall into the trap of "protecting the artwork as it is"—instead, focus on making the artwork beautiful and engaging for the players who love it.

If you ever need clarification or further feedback, my email is always open: adrielflavio2@hotmail.com

Adriel Flavio / NBF_FlavioHyuga (PS5)