“Don’t Buy Marathon as a Donation”: Bungie Says Destiny’s Future Doesn’t Depend on Marathon

Bungie’s Head of Product Josh Deane has asked players not to buy Marathon just to support the studio and Destiny. He stressed that Bungie’s plans for Destiny don’t depend on how well Marathon does.

Deane, who is also Marathon’s general manager, recently published a blog post about the future of Destiny. In it, he mentioned a “new forever Destiny” and a Destiny “Legacy” project. He also wrote that “nothing can help bridge us into the future more than for Marathon to rapidly evolve and become sustainable.”

Some players read this as a sign that Destiny’s fate hinges on Marathon’s success. After that, some of them started urging others to buy the shooter to help Bungie.

On X, Deane explained that the two games aren’t tied together:

• “In no way is the Destiny plan contingent upon Marathon.”
• “Don’t buy Marathon as a donation or offer anything else. It’s our job to show up for you.”
• “Only buy or play a thing that inspires you from us/ you think is cool!”
• “We will find our way back home with Destiny.”

Deane advises buying only what really inspires you, and the same rule works for gaming gear. If you’re looking for a chair that’s actually worth the money, check out Blacklyte. Pro players and well-known esports organizations regularly choose this brand’s chairs, so you can be confident they’ll keep you comfortable through long sessions, whether you’re grinding raids in Destiny 2 or running extractions in Marathon.

In June 2026, Destiny 2 got its final content update and moved into maintenance mode. In September, however, Bungie’s new leadership said Destiny remains “foundational” to the studio’s future. As a first step, the studio plans to bring back previously vaulted content.

Marathon, meanwhile, is going through a rough stretch. At launch, it peaked at 88,000 concurrent players on Steam, but its daily average is now around 2,000–3,000. In September, Bungie admitted that Marathon “did not reach as many players as we had hoped.” The studio is now expanding the game: the Nightfall Refresh update arrived in October, and the big Symbiosis update with a permanent PvE mode is coming in December.