How to play the Marathon alpha

Marathon finally got its big reveal during a dedicated livestream event featuring plenty of curated gameplay, developer interviews, and details of the upcoming extraction shooter from Bungie. The developers also unveiled its release date set for later this year, but you can get a taste of Marathon a bit early.

Bungie is hosting a closed alpha playtest for Marathon later this month, and here’s how you can sign up for it.

How to sign up for the Marathon closed alpha

The first playtest for Marathon features an alpha build and is limited to a few testers only. To join it, you need to become a member of their Discord server by following these steps:

• First, head over to the invite link and join Marathon’s dedicated Discord server.
• You will see a pop-up asking if you’re interested in the alpha. Check that and accept the server rules.
• Now, at the bottom left, open the #alpha_access channel.
• Type in the following command in the chat:

/alpha

• This will create a unique link for you with your Discord username at the end. Don’t worry, this entire message is only visible to you.

• Open the link and select your desired platform: PlayStation Network, Xbox Live, or Steam.

• This requires a Bungie account for verification. After that’s done, you will be presented with an NDA.
• Read through it and select all the agreement conditions. Here are a few important ones:
  • You are not allowed to stream or share videos or images from the closed alpha.
  • You are not allowed to discuss the closed alpha outside of the approved private channels in the Marathon Discord server.
• Once you accept the NDA, a survey will open asking you various questions about your region, age, and history with previous Bungie releases and PvP titles in general.

After that, you’re done, and your desire to participate in the closed alpha is confirmed. Since this is a closed alpha, simply signing up does not confirm a slot for the playtest.

Who can sign up for the Marathon closed alpha?

The first closed alpha is a bit limited in scope. You can only participate in this alpha if you meet the following conditions:

• You currently reside in the United States of America or Canada.
• You are at least 18 years old.

Marathon closed alpha schedule

The closed alpha for Marathon is scheduled from April 23 to May 4. This lengthy closed alpha runs for nearly 11 days, giving players plenty of time to explore the game’s mechanics and systems and provide valuable feedback to the developers.

Bungie describes this as a “fairly small playtest” as they aim to test the technical capabilities of the current build and get feedback from players. They have also confirmed that larger tests are planned for the future and there will be plenty of opportunities to try out the title before its launch later this year.

Marathon release date

Marathon is releasing on PC via Steam, Xbox Series S|X, and PlayStation 5 on Sept. 23, 2025.

If you aren’t from the U.S. or Canada, don’t worry, as there will be more tests in the coming months. Marathon is going against fairly established extraction shooters, and the developers at Bungie need all the feedback they can get during the next six months.