Marathon Server Slam opens Feb. 26 for marathon server slam preview weekend

The marathon server slam launches as an open preview weekend that gives players a free chance to play before Marathon’s March 5 release, and it matters because this run is explicitly a large-scale technical stress test tied to rewards and launch preparations. The Server Slam begins on February 26 at 1 p. m. ET and runs through March 2 at 1 p. m. ET.

Timing, platforms and free access during the Server Slam

The Server Slam runs from February 26 at 1 p. m. ET to March 2 at 1 p. m. ET and is billed as an open preview weekend. Players can jump in on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC, and the weekend build will include cross-play and cross-save. The game will be available to play for free during the Server Slam on those platforms, and the event is also tied to broader festival showcases on a major PC storefront.

Joe Ziegler’s 11 tips and edited guidance ahead of the weekend

Marathon game director Joe Ziegler shared 11 tips for beginners ahead of the Server Slam; those tips were edited for clarity by a games publication and were also noted by a separate outlet. The guidance arrived as the weekend approaches, with at least one preview saying the slam begins in just a few hours from publication time.

What Bungie calls a technical stress test and how the team will react

Bungie frames the Server Slam as a technical stress test: the studio is turning services on worldwide, inviting as many players in as possible, and watching systems while players log in, crew up, infil, exfil, log out and repeat. The developer says staff will stand by throughout the weekend to address issues, monitor performance and make adjustments; when something breaks the team expects to use that data to improve the launch on March 5. Bungie also told players that if they join “starside” during the Server Slam the aim is to arrive on launch day ready for the dangers of Tau Ceti.

What’s playable now versus what’s coming at launch and in Season 1

The Server Slam is intentionally a slice of the full game and will not include all maps and content coming at launch. At full launch and in Season 1 players should expect additional zones, factions, contracts, gear, deeper progression, Ranked mode and other secrets. Two maps—Outpost and Cryo Archive—are slated to appear at launch, with Cryo Archive specifically arriving during Season 1. A sixth Runner Shell called Thief will be available at launch but not during the Server Slam, and Ranked arrives in Season 1.

Marathon’s maps are set on the Tau Ceti planet, with the game taking place on Tau Ceti IV: a derelict space colony where Runners and hostile UESC security forces roam. The setting is the year 2893, 99 years after the original Marathon game and hundreds of years after the colony’s establishment. Maps include futuristic research facilities and lush forests; the planet surface is only the beginning, and players will work their way toward the Cryo Archive, the first floor of the UESC Marathon itself, which orbits above.

Cosmetic and loot rewards, banking progression and streaming bonuses

Everyone who completes the introductory mission during the weekend will unlock a unique Beta. exe emblem and a Complex Study player background exclusive to Server Slam participants. Time spent during the Slam will also bank loot rewards for launch based on progress: completing the first mission unlocks the Standard Arrival Cache; reaching Runner Level 10 unlocks the Enhanced Arrival Cache (Green); reaching Runner Level 30 unlocks the Deluxe Arrival Cache (Blue). Cosmetic and loot rewards will be delivered once Marathon launches on Thursday, March 5, and Bungie warns it will take some time to roll them out to everyone.

Throughout the Server Slam weekend viewers can tune in to streamers and snag a set of cosmetic rewards for launch; organizers say full claim details will appear on support pages. The Server Slam is a final beta-style preview designed to be plenty of play for a weekend while helping the team spin up global infrastructure ahead of the full launch on March 5.