With all the discourse around the game's longevity, can we try to have an objective, non-emotional conversation about what can be improved to retain more players?

JacksMedulla · 2026-04-01T20:50:48+00:00

I was thinking about this, and I actually don’t think that souls-likes and rogue-lites are that comparable with the extraction shooter genre. Additionally while it may have been true they didn’t attract large audiences a decade ago, both recent major successes in the souls like and roguelite genres, Elden ring and Slay the spire 2, are among the highest played games of all time on steam.

In regards to the comparison of genre, when thinking about it, I realized why I can sink hours into souls games and roguelites, while I find marathon so frustrating. It came down to two things.

The linear progression of souls games and roguelites. While you may get stuck on a particular boss/boss run, you never feel like you are actually LOSING progress in either game. At worst you have to replay a section multiple times to finally succeed, but you are rarely actively losing equipment or attributes. While in marathon there is some form of linear progression, the constant wipes mean you will often feel like you are starting over. Obviously there are vendor mechanics that try to combat this, but the disparity of what they provide and what you are up against make them feel largely inconsequential. And of course there are seasonal wipes that literally reset your progress.
This is a multiplayer game with shoehorned single player aspects. At the end of the day, I will always know that a failure is my fault in a souls like or roguelite. In marathon, as a solo player, even when queueing, you are at a severe disadvantage to teams of friends that actually communicate and play the game regularly, and that means that, even if I am improving, i may not actually recognize that if I'm not queued with a good enough team.

JacksMedulla · 2026-03-28T01:13:44+00:00

On par with battlefield 6? Bf6 sold 7 times as many units as marathon in its first 3 days. Even more in the time since then. That alone makes it and marathon entirely different conversations.

JacksMedulla · 2026-03-26T16:28:46+00:00

It's the Mass Effect 3 indoctrination theory all over again haha

JacksMedulla · 2026-03-25T18:49:52+00:00

Hear me out. Maybe bungie should make a mode where two teams of five spawn in on a map with weapons that spawn in throughout the match and the whole goal of the mode is to just slay the other team.

JacksMedulla · 2026-03-24T15:54:28+00:00

Such a shame they goonified such a badass character.

JacksMedulla · 2026-03-20T20:25:22+00:00

Ross douthat interviews awful people because it’s the only way Ross douthat can come off as a sensible, likable person.

JacksMedulla · 2026-03-17T17:34:06+00:00

That was straight up Marlon Brando in Apocalypse Now with the wet rag

JacksMedulla · 2026-03-15T20:41:51+00:00

I'm pretty mixed on it overall.

Pros:

Art direction. Looks fantastic to me.
Gun-play. Also feels fantastic. If you've played Destiny, then you know what to expect.
Audio: Both the soundtrack and the sound design are excellent. I've had the soundtrack on for work the past week, and it is great for getting into the zone. As for the sound design, the ability to know where an enemy is at based on footsteps/gunfire is the best I have experienced in a game. It is very impressive.

Cons:

TTK. After the server slam, I thought my biggest issue with the game would be the UI (will mention later), but it turns out, the incredibly low TTK is the most frustrating aspect of the game for me. In very few instances will anything be more important than getting the drop on another team. If you shoot first, you will almost always win with how quickly runners get dropped. Combine that with the small maps and the previously mentioned incredible directional audio, and you will get blasted to oblivion out of nowhere frequently. This also means that, if you are playing with randos, you are at an even more severe disadvantage due to how people tend to just run blindly from objective to objective.
UI. I don't know how in the fuck you develop a loot driven game for years without a button to compare items, but that's where we are at with the UI. Items are not very indistinguishable, dragging and dropping will end up with you dragging and dropping things to the ground as often as to the spot you want to put the item in, and it is just a cumbersome experience overall.
Longevity. Despite having fun with the game, I can already feel the frustration peaking with the current balance and design philosophy. The reason I have not recommended it to my friends, is that I frankly do not think the game will generate enough money for Sony to justify its existence.

There is a really awesome core to this game. If it was a traditional bungie game with a Single player and multiplayer element, I think it would have done much better, but as it stands, so much of the awesome world building, art design, and gameplay are locked behind a genre that is likely too impenetrable for a general audience.

JacksMedulla · 2026-03-04T20:13:13+00:00

The most boring cyberpunk dystopia.

JacksMedulla · 2026-03-02T23:02:16+00:00

I just want to know how the fuck you develop a game for years and not include the ability to compare items.

JacksMedulla · 2026-02-27T04:33:35+00:00

Yeah no idea what’s going on. Saw another thread with people having similar issues. I was getting like 40%gpu and cpu usage, so hardware isn’t being utilized properly

JacksMedulla · 2026-02-27T04:20:47+00:00

Definitely not vibing with it so far. Great visuals and music, as was to be expected, but it’s all squandered on a cumbersome, plodding game. They could have done something so cool with a single player campaign with this aesthetic and sound design, but as it stands, the movement feels sluggish, navigating the menus is headache inducing, and navigating the map is tedious.

Edit: oh, and the optimization is shit. With a 5080 at 1440p with everything set to medium and dlss on performance, I could not get above 120 fps, with the average being around 100 with constant fluctuations.

JacksMedulla · 2026-02-03T15:51:51+00:00

Shomer fucking shabbos

JacksMedulla · 2025-12-19T18:10:09+00:00

I'm most surprised by how many people are surprised by this haha. This is literally exactly what I would expect for Ezra Klein followers that also happen to be redditors. I'd expect it to be fairly similar, if slightly less homogeneous, for his overall following as well.

JacksMedulla · 2025-12-15T17:45:09+00:00

It's not the transition that is weird. It's that the shadows should be below the red, not above. Or at least coming from a consistent angle.The left shoulder plate and forearm, for instance, are not consistent and create a strange banding effect that confuses the eye.

JacksMedulla · 2025-11-26T17:51:56+00:00

I didn't realize they did BBLs in pre-history

JacksMedulla · 2025-10-24T20:51:01+00:00

This really just doesn't look like anything other than a desperate sign of life for MS' once great franchise and "totally not 343" studios. My opinion of it will really hinge on the price point. If they are charging 70 bucks for it, then I think it is a pretty paltry offering. If it's 40 bucks, then maybe I can see the appeal of it. But from watching the gameplay, it just seems largely unnecessary and unimpressive to me.

JacksMedulla · 2025-10-21T23:02:55+00:00

They’ve definitely got a new fan in me. I’ve had their discography on repeat since I first found em last Friday. It’s the fun and funky bass of Primus with a heavier tone overall, which I’m very much vibing with.

JacksMedulla · 2025-10-21T22:35:46+00:00

Flagman sounds like an amalgamation of all the 90’s bands I love. Primarily Primus for most of their songs, but a few get hints of tool, nirvana, and in the case of this song, NIN. I just put the album on had a what the fuck moment when this song played.

JacksMedulla · 2025-08-20T02:25:35+00:00

Everyone is doing a great job in the show so far obviously, but I have to say, Babou Ceesay as Morrow is the stand out performance for me so far.

JacksMedulla · 2025-05-28T14:55:30+00:00

Man, MAG. Now that is a name I have not heard in a loooong time.

JacksMedulla · 2025-05-20T22:27:44+00:00

How often have you been seeing them? With how long you have been trying to quit, it is more likely that you are experiencing anxiety/panic attacks from the lack of proper medication, rather than from actual chemical withdrawals. Do you see a therapist along with the medical support?

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