Technology
This app makes remote homelab access stupidly simple—no port forwarding required
When you set up a service on your home server, you can access it right away by just typing the server's IP address, followed by the port that service is mapped to. So long as you're connected to the same network as the server, you can access that service.
Forget the Mercedes-Benz GLE—This Korean SUV is plusher, faster, and cheaper
The Mercedes-Benz GLE has long been one of the default choices for buyers shopping in the premium midsize SUV segment, offering strong comfort, prestige, and a polished driving experience. But in 2026, paying extra for a German badge no longer guarantees the best overall package. One Korean luxury SUV is making that reality impossible to ignore.
Sam Altman deeply sorry OpenAI didnt report mass shooting suspect
On Friday, local news site Tumbler Ridgelines published an apology from OpenAI founder and CEO Sam Altman concerning a mass shooting.
The letter, dated April 23, is addressed to the community of Tumbler Ridge, a small town in British Columbia, Canada, where the alleged shooter, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, killed eight people and then herself on Feb. 10. Van Rootselaar used ChatGPT, and her first account was suspended in June 2025 after it detected content that presented as "an indication of potential real-world violence." She was then banned, but OpenAI didn't report her to law enforcement, and she was able to create a second ChatGPT account that wasn't discovered until after the shooting.
SEE ALSO: Florida investigates OpenAI over deadly mass shootingWeeks after the shooting, OpenAI announced it would change its safety protocols.
British Columbia Premier David Eby stated in March that Sam Altman would apologize and call for better regulations, and, as Tumbler Ridgelines pointed out, it's now here a month later.
"When I spoke with Mayor [Darryl] Krakowka and Premier Eby about this tragedy, they conveyed the anger, sadness, and concern being felt across Tumbler Ridge. We agreed a public apology was necessary, but that time was also needed to respect the community as you grieved. I share this letter with the understanding that everyone grieves in their own way and in their own time," the letter states.
Altman goes on to say that he's "deeply sorry" that OpenAI didn't alert law enforcement when the ChatGPT account was banned in June. "While I know words can never be enough, I believe an apology is necessary to recognize the harm and irreversible loss your community has suffered," he wrote.
He also said he commits to finding "ways to prevent tragedies like this in the future."
"Going forward, our focus will continue to be on working with all levels of government to help ensure something like this never happens again," Altman wrote.
Eby posted on X that the apology is "necessary, and yet grossly insufficient for the devastation done to the families of Tumbler Ridge." Days prior, on Wednesday, he said that the investigation into the shooting has reached its final stages.
The apology also comes days after Florida's attorney general announced an investigation into OpenAI and ChatGPT following a mass shooting at Florida State University in April 2025. A recent report from the Center for Countering Digital Hate found that eight in 10 popular AI chatbots assisted in planning violent crimes.
Disclosure: Ziff Davis, Mashable’s parent company, in April 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.
The internet from your terminal: 8 ways to use cURL
The curl command-line tool is one of the most useful and versatile programs you can learn. Its versatility and comprehensive HTTP implementation mean that, if there’s a URL for it, curl can do it.
3 Plex settings I immediately change on every TV and phone
Plex can be a really powerful tool if you use it properly. But it can take a bit of elbow grease to set up initially, and some of the default settings might actually harm your experience. Here's what you need to turn off and why.
XChat is now available on the iOS store
X's long-anticipated WhatsApp and Telegram rival, XChat, made its standalone app debut Friday afternoon, landing on the iOS App Store after nearly a year since it was rebranded under its new name. The launch marks the full rollout of Elon Musk's overhauled DM platform, which emphasizes user privacy.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.Pre-orders opened last week, with X touting XChat's fully encrypted messaging as its flagship feature. Beyond end-to-end encryption, the app promises zero user tracking, no ads, and an array of in-message privacy tools — including the ability to hide photos from recipients after sending.
SEE ALSO: Lawsuit against Elon Musk threatens DOGE actions, survives early court challengeThere's a casualty, however. X's Communities feature is being axed to make way for XChat, a move that may sting for its niche but loyal user base. Communities functioned as X's answer to Reddit's subreddit forums, letting users follow curated feeds around specific interests — not unlike Bluesky's Feeds. But according to X's Head of Product Nikita Bier, the feature saw minimal traction: only 0.4% of users ever engaged with it, and those who did were largely "user-acquisition channels for Kick or compensated clipper communities."
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.In its place, XChat will offer large-scale group chats — currently capped at 350 users, with plans to expand that ceiling to 1,000. Communities officially goes dark on May 30.
You can throw your 3D prints in an oven to improve their strength (here’s how it works)
3D printing strong objects can prove challenging. Tougher filament types cost more, require hardened nozzles, and benefit from things you might not have, like a chamber heater. So what if you could get improved strength and heat resistance from basic filaments like PLA and PETG?
These Kindle layout settings are the closest thing to reading a real book
I’m the type of person who finds any kind of reading a good time. It could be by listening to celebrity-narrated audiobooks or by checking out the latest special editions to buy thanks to BookTok, but often I use my e-reader.
This one Bash script replaced half my desktop utilities
I’ve tried countless utilities to manage my tasks, organize my notes, and keep track of contacts. But there’s something about my workflow—or brain—that just keeps me from sticking with them, and I’m destined to forever be on the lookout for the next tool to try.
This free open-source app gave my Android phone the task manager it should've had
On desktop operating systems, you can usually look up exactly which apps and services are currently running on your device. Utilities like htop or Task Manager let you monitor what processes are actually running on the machine, either in the foreground or the background. However, Android (by default) doesn't have anything like this. This is how you can set one up.
3 reasons you should own at least 3 drills
If you're a homeowner, DIY enthusiast, or busy on the job, you probably own all sorts of power tools. But do you own more than one drill? Slowing down to swap drill bits is like only owning one pair of shoes. If you're ready to finish jobs faster and work smarter, here's why you should have two, three, or even four drills.
This 20-year-old app gave me a reason to start using my Kindle again
I love to read. Nothing beats a good science fiction paperback or graphic novel. E-books (and comics) were a wonderful, mind-blowing thing when they came out. I loved spending less money, having easier access, and not having to worry about space as much.
3 acclaimed Paramount+ documentaries to stream this weekend (April 24-26)
Are you a fan of documentaries? Are you also a Paramount+ subscriber? Then you're in the right place if you're looking for a few suggestions for a good doc or docuseries to watch.
Swapping schedules for sensors made my Home Assistant setup feel human
Setting up your smart home automations to run on a schedule often seems like the best option, but that's not always the case. When I moved some of these automations to sensor-based triggers, it made my home feel much more natural.
This Toyota hybrid beats Acura, Genesis, and even Lexus where it matters most
The 2026 Toyota Crown Signia is not a typical SUV or crossover. By combining a unique shooting brake silhouette with the refined ride of a premium sedan, the Crown Signia is an impossible-to-ignore alternative to the average boxy crossover.
5 things you never thought a $5 ESP32 could do
The ESP32 is an inexpensive and versatile microcontroller that is normally associated with cheap smart home devices and small DIY gadgets. But this sliver of silicon can do much more than you probably thought, as evidenced by projects that push the board to its limit.
I quit paying for Adobe Acrobat and switched to a free tool that does more
Adobe Acrobat is the standard tool everyone reaches for when they're authoring or editing PDFs. However, I've started using a privacy-first alternative that allows me to do everything I need with PDFs—all without a subscription fee or a login.
My cats and I found the 8 best vacuums for pet owners, from powerful hair pickup to livestream cameras
While every pet parent needs a vacuum to quell the pet hair situation, some vacuums can take on even more pet-related responsibilities. There are robot vacuums that can avoid pet waste and toys, robot vacuums with livestream pet cameras, and a robot vacuum that comes with its own portable carpet cleaner (now we just need Roborock to expand the Saros Z70's robotic arm capabilities to pet toy cleanup). Manual cordless vacuums come with their own advantageous flexibility, like the option to go handheld and extend cleaning to furry furniture and staircases. I use both types of vacuums daily and wrote a whole buying guide for anyone stumped between a robot vacuum and a stick vacuum.
Other vacuums I've tested recentlyI tested several other top robot vacuums in the past two years that didn't make the most recent cut for this list. Some, like the Roborock S8 MaxV Ultra, Roborock Qrevo Master, Narwal Freo X Ultra, and various versions of the Roomba j7, were my top recommendations at one point, but have since been overshadowed by newer, more powerful models that are a better bang for your buck. Most recently, in the last few months of 2025, I was impressed by the Roomba Plus 505 Combo, Plus 405 Combo, and Narwal Freo Z10 Ultra. They ultimately just weren't the most thorough vacuum cleaners in their price range.
New robot vacuums announced at CES 2026Several top robot vacuum brands unveiled new flagship models at CES in early January. These include the Roborock Saros 20 Sonic and Qrevo Curv 2 Flow, the Dreame X60 Max Ultra Complete, and the Narwal Flow 2. I will be testing these at home as soon as possible and will update this guide accordingly once all are officially available for purchase.
How to choose a robot vacuum for pet hairLet's dive a little deeper into the features that could make or break your experience with trusting a robot vacuum to clean up after pets.
Suction power and brush rollsI recommend vacuums with at least 8,000 Pa suction power for effective pet hair pickup, though homes with heavy carpeting and more than two pets should consider suction power of at least 12,000 Pa. But the brush roll system is nearly just as important when choosing a vacuum for pet fur. In my testing, vacuums with dual brush rolls are far more effective. For reference, the most powerful robot vacuums in 2025 ranged between 20,000 and 30,000 Pa of suction power, and new robot vacuums coming out in 2026 bump that up to 35,000 Pa.
Automatic emptyingPet parents should definitely opt for a self-emptying robot vacuum — so much fur being sucked up will lead to a full dustbin faster, and you won't feel like emptying it yourself every day. Even with daily usage, an auto-empty robot vacuum can last between one and three months before you need to empty the dustbin.
MoppingIf hardwood or tile is prevalent in your home, the best robot vacuum and mop combo for pet hair will be able to sanitize the floor while mopping and then wash its own mops to rinse off any lingering hair. Mopping is also much more likely to effectively wipe up other minuscule pet-related debris, like pet dander and kitty litter dust, that are too small to be inhaled by a vacuum's suction power.
Smart mappingSome rooms or spots on the floor within those rooms get furrier than others. A smart mapping robot vacuum learns the layout of your home and can head to specific zones on command, which you can queue up right from the app. In my opinion, smart mapping is the most worthwhile robot vacuum feature, and should be a baseline even when searching for a cheap model — cleaning performance is a moot point if the vacuum can't get where it needs to go in the first place.
Small obstacle avoidanceSome advanced robot vacuums use cameras and 3D sensors to pinpoint any small roadblocks in the cleaning path in front of them. When successful, these vacuums save themselves from eating most pet toys, cords, laundry, or socks or shoes, avoid ramming into pet bowls, and even dodge pet waste.
The Cosori Iconic is the sexiest air fryer Ive tried. But better yet, its non-toxic and plastic-free.
What's in a name? It turns out Cosori was right to call its new $249 air fryer the "Iconic." With a polished stainless steel design, versatile cooking functions, and generally useful smart features, it's basically the Cadillac of basket air fryers. But that's not the only reason I think it's worth the splurge after several months of testing.
Unlike many other air fryers, the Iconic doesn't contain any plastic components that can leach microplastics at high temperatures, and its basket isn't coated in harmful forever chemicals, or PFAS, including PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene, aka Teflon). As someone who's overly picky about kitchenware for the sake of myself and my pets — Teflon is super dangerous for my parrot — I have no qualms about firing up the Iconic on a regular basis.
Cosori Iconic Stainless Steel 6.5-quart Smart Air Fryer $249 at AmazonShop Now at Amazon Shop Now at Cosori Shop Now at Best Buy Design and construction
Myriad air fryers have a stainless steel finish over black plastic construction, including other Cosori models, but the Iconic has a more premium build that's almost fully stainless steel inside and out. One exception is its basket handle, which is made from plastic only so you don't scorch your hand when you grab it. Most of its exterior gets hot to the touch when it runs on a higher setting for more than a few minutes.
There's no plastic in here. Credit: Haley Henschel / MashableThe Iconic's other non-stainless parts are its basket interior and metal crisper plate, both of which have a ceramic nonstick coating. According to a chemical disclosure statement by VeSync, Cosori's parent company, it doesn't contain any Teflon. (I'll mention here that Cosori's top-selling air fryer on Amazon, the $119.99 TurboBlaze, does use Teflon.) Anecdotally, I didn't notice any weird synthetic smells when the Iconic was running.
The Iconic has a tempered glass control panel. Credit: Haley Henschel / MashableCleaner cooking aside, the Iconic's mainly stainless build makes a big aesthetic impact. It looks luxe and matches the other brushed stainless steel appliances in my kitchen. What's more, I was surprised to find that it doesn't cling to fingerprints very easily — unlike my stainless Samsung fridge, which is a smudge magnet. Any crumbs or food crud that gets on its surface is easy to erase with a dishcloth or a damp paper towel.
The Iconic's basket and crisper plate also wipe down nicely between food batches, and you can toss them in the dishwasher for a more thorough scrubbing at the end of a meal.
The Iconic STUNS in stainless steel. Credit: Haley Henschel / MashableI'm usually very anti-countertop clutter, but the Iconic is so sleek that I can tolerate it sitting out. I also don't really have a choice because it's too big to fit in any of my cabinets. It weighs just over 14 pounds, stands about a foot tall, and has a footprint of about 15 by 12 inches, so it's a little bulky.
Cooking modes My Iconic creations. Credit: Haley Henschel / MashableOn the tippy-top of the Iconic, you'll find a glass touch control panel with six different cooking functions: Air Fry, Roast, Bake, Dry, Proof, and Reheat. Each function has its own temperature and time presets ranging from 90 to 450 degrees Fahrenheit and one minute to 24 hours. They also have set fan speeds; Dry and Proof are basically inaudible, while Air Fry and Roast whir the loudest. I'd say they're still less than half as loud as my hair dryer, the Shark FlexStyle.
If you need a reminder to flip your food, you can press a separate Shake button that makes the Iconic beep a few times halfway through an Air Fry cycle. (It only works with that mode.)
I tried all of the Iconic's cooking functions, and they work wonderfully. Air Fry produced a slightly charred, still-pink cheeseburger and crispy fries without any oil. Roast caramelized a medley of broccoli and red onions without burning them. I used Bake to make some crusty-but-fluffy brownies, and Dry to dehydrate Honeycrisp apples and bell peppers (some snacks for the aforementioned parrot). Reheat warmed up leftovers without making them soggy; it's put my microwave out of business.
Sometimes you don't want to fire up the grill for a single burger. I literally get it. Credit: Haley Henschel / MashableI even made whole wheat sourdough in the Iconic. The dough formed an unsightly crust on top after proofing for two hours, but it disappeared in the shaping/baking process and left me with a cute little loaf of very moist, very edible sandwich bread.
While ninety degrees is technically too hot for proofing sourdough, or really any kind of dough, this little loaf turned out fine. (Ugly and a bit over-proofed, but fine.) Credit: Haley Henschel / MashableThe Iconic has a 6.5-quart basket, making it a good size for a small household. It comfortably fit a whole bag of fries, four single-serve brownies (in ramekins), and every sliced round of a fat apple (laid flat in one layer).
The Iconic is parrot-approved. Credit: Haley Henschel / Mashable Smart featuresThe Iconic supports smart controls via VeSync's mobile app if you connect it to WiFi, and they feel about 70 percent useful.
With the Cooking Functions feature, you can select settings from your phone and send them to the Iconic; they'll appear on its control panel in seconds. You can't actually start it remotely, but that's a safety feature. The app will show a timer once the cooking cycle begins and send you a notification when your food is ready.
The app will show you how much cook time is left. Credit: Screenshots via VeSyncIf you're not sure how to cook a particular food, a Cooking Chart feature can suggest settings based on the serving size and "status" (i.e., whether a vegetable is chopped or meat is bone-in).
Get a little extra help from the app's Cooking Chart. Credit: Screenshots via VeSyncHypothetically, you can also pull up settings by scanning bar codes on foods' packaging through the VeSync app, but it didn't work with most of the things I've tried. That includes Purdue popcorn chicken and every Trader Joe's snack I had in my freezer (hashbrown patties, falafel, breaded fish filets, and mozzarella sticks). I finally had luck with some frozen garlic breadsticks, which turned out well when I air fried them on the recommended settings — golden brown on the outside, soft on the inside.
Success. Credit: Haley Henschel / MashableThe app contains a History list of your past cooking cycles in case you want to reuse settings. There's also an Achievements counter where you can see a weekly recap of your meals and any badges you've earned for cooking certain foods regularly. (I don't know anyone who would actually use this. Some things just don't need to be gamified!)
If you need some cooking inspo, there's a library of healthy air fryer recipes in the app under a Diet tab. It lets you add your own recipes and create shopping lists of ingredients.
Some alternativesOther non-toxic, plastic-free air fryer options include the Ninja Crispi ($179.99), the Our Place Wonder Oven ($185 to $245, depending on the size), and the Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer ($349.99). The Iconic is in the middle of the pack price-wise, but it has the best warranty: five years to everyone else's one.
For what it's worth, I also own and love the Crispi. It's easy to store and has glass baskets that double as storage containers for leftovers, though it has few settings and can't fit full bags of fries. Ninja's newer Crispi Pro has more settings, a bigger temperature range, and a larger basket than the original Crispi, but it costs $299.99. Neither model supports smart controls.
Cosori versus Crispi. Credit: Haley Henschel / MashableThe Our Place and Breville models are both oven-style air fryers that let you cook multiple trays of food at once, which is super convenient. But the Wonder Oven doesn't have a companion app, and the Breville Smart Oven Air Fryer is expensive. Plus, its pizza pan has a Teflon coating.
If you're someone who likes traditional basket-style air fryers, wants smart features and recipe guidance, and you regularly feed at least two people, you'll probably prefer the Iconic over the competition.
Cosori Iconic Stainless Steel 6.5-quart Smart Air Fryer $249 at AmazonShop Now at Amazon Shop Now at Cosori Shop Now at Best Buy
Review: Marathon is a rewarding, slow burn of a game with fascinating lore
Bungie is a world-class studio making some of the best first-person shooters in the world. In my initial hand-on piece on Marathon, I said the gunplay was impressive and the art direction enticing, but after fully playing through this title, I'm even more impressed — and that's no surprise.
From Halo all the way to Destiny, Bungie has a record of hits. For Marathon, the company brought back one of its older franchises to add to its shooter repertoire. It’s Bungie at its best and shows why the developer is still a top player in the video game space. From its incredible gunplay, level design, art direction, and soundscapes, there’s nothing quite like Marathon.
Marathon takes place on the planet Tau Ceti IV, where human colonists have uploaded their consciousnesses to inhabit disposable cybernetic ones, turning them into “Runners.” As Runners, they constantly infiltrate Tau Ceti IV to scrounge up any resources, artifacts, and data to bring back to their factions. While Marathon doesn’t present its story front and center, the various factions are surprisingly interesting. It reminds me of Concord, where I actually found reading about its lore in the in-game encyclopedia much more fun than playing the actual game.
Credit: BungieIn Marathon, there are six different factions to fulfill contracts with, and they all embody different aspects of Marathon’s universe. For example, the starting faction is Cyberacme, whose expertise is AI, while NuCaloric focuses on agricultural matters and basic needs. And the contracts that these factions dole out often have you playing Marathon in different ways. MIDA, the anarchist group, has you running around and triggering alarms. Sekiguchi, on the other hand, is the company behind the cybernetic shells and views Runners as experimental test subjects. Some of their contract requirements include taking a certain amount of fall damage. Marathon’s worldbuilding is told through clever gameplay and these factions.
Thankfully, Marathon has solid gameplay loops to back it up. It’s an extraction shooter, similar to ARC Raiders, where players jump into a map, collect items, and exfil out. If you’re an avid Destiny player, meaning that you’re used to going in guns blazing, Marathon will feel entirely foreign to you.
You’re limited in supplies, and any items that you bring with you or collect on the field will disappear if you die. You need to plan out your routes methodically and explore carefully in order to avoid fights at all costs. This creates a tense atmosphere of unpredictability that’s equally unnerving, yet exciting. Scattered across the field are both NPCs and other human players, and trust me, they’re hard. The robotic NPCs are durable, and other human players show absolutely no mercy.
This makes Marathon feel so distinctly different from Halo, Destiny, and even ARC Raiders. If you try to take the NPCs in a gunfight, you’ll most likely get wiped, which is a stark difference from Bungie’s other shooters. In ARC Raiders, you’ll come across many friendly human players, but in Marathon, they won’t hesitate to just murk you. This contrast ultimately comes down to their themes. In ARC Raiders, humanity bands together to take on deadly machinations, while in Marathon, you’re at each other’s throats for scraps on Tau Ceti IV. It’s every Runner for themselves.
The way gunfights break out feels organic and leads to a lot of emergent moments, making Ceta Tau feel like such an oppressive but masochistically fun place to be. As expected of Bungie, the guns feel slick and impactful, making the moment-by-moment shootouts incredibly exhilarating.
Credit: BungieIf you successfully exfil, then items that you bring back are automatically sold, and you can use the money to purchase guns and other equipment to give yourself an initial advantage when you deploy again. But don’t forget, you could very well die, even with your shiny new toys, and lose everything you brought with you.
This gives Marathon the “just one more fun” kind of loop. Even if you die, you never feel like you’re too far behind, and everyone feels like they’re on a level playing field. This is thanks to sponsored kits, which the factions provide to give you the most basic tools, like guns and healing supplies, to start a run. The downside is that you can’t use any other equipment. But even with the most rudimentary equipment, you can emerge successfully by playing well. Whenever that happens, there’s an immense sense of accomplishment when you exfil.
Looking at the Map Credit: Bunie Credit: BungieMarathon’s map design is impeccable as well. So far, there are four maps: Perimeter, Dire Marsh, Outpost, and Cryo Archive. Each of them is escalating in complexity, too. Perimeter is a fantastic starting point and is more beginner-friendly, as it has large, wide-open spaces. Dire Marsh increases the intensity a bit with fog and dense grasses, requiring you to be more careful. When a fight breaks out, it can be hard to figure out where bullets are raining down on you compared to playing in Perimeter. What I love about these two maps is that it’s easy to hop into them if you’re just looking to play a quick match.
Outpost is when things start to ramp up, as it's a smaller map with tighter corners. You’ll run into other human players much more often. Since players tend to have more valuable loot than the robot NPCs, the risk and reward ratio is higher. Plus, you’ll need to acquire special keyguards in order to get to the map’s center, the Pinwheel, where the most valuable loot is located. Unlike Perimeter and Dire Marsh, coming in with a communicative team will have you see higher levels of success than playing with randoms. If you’re really serious about Marathon, Outpost is a great way to test your skills — and your patience.
Credit: BungieBut Marathon’s true test is its last available map, Cryo Archive. It's an unforgivingly cold and difficult labyrinth. To even access it, you need to equip gear with a total value of 5,000 credits, so you can’t just roll in there with a sponsored kit. And another kicker is that it’s only available to play on weekends. Basically, the idea of this is to play Marathon throughout the week to accumulate strong gear, and then head into the Cryo Archive when the weekend starts. And trust me, you’ll need to be as prepared as you can. Getting ready for this map shows how dedicated you are to Marathon, although the downside is that many casual players won’t ever get to feel how exhilarating and tense it is as the barrier to entry can be an issue.
In any case, Cryo Archive features an ingenious amount of level design. There are multiple clearance levels (up to level 5), and you’ll need to hack monitors and grab security tags off of players you kill. It’s such a complicated process that dwarfs anything you experience on Perimeter and Dire Marsh. You can’t even extract out the normal way as you would do in the other maps, either. You have to reach at least clearance level 3, and you’re also under a time limit. There’s a certain kind of satisfaction that goes into planning a Cryo Archive run. The winnings are astronomical, but the losses are just as extreme. Cryo Archive’s puzzle-like layout rivals that of Resident Evil Requiem’s care center puzzle-box. Even under a ton of pressure, I can’t help but marvel at the level design.
Going Back to the Future Credit: BungieWhat really ties Marathon together is the retro-futurism aesthetic that the game is going for. The font and menus look exactly like what Apple interfaces looked like in the ‘80s, deliberately referencing Marathon’s origins on Macintosh computers. The sound design is equally impressive. Audio cues are incredibly important in Marathon, as the ring of gunfire can give away your position. Even engaging in shootouts with the NPC robots is a risk. In the Cryo Archive, especially, you also need to be aware of the sound of your footsteps. Hearing the sound of glass breaking or the blaring alarms of a lockdown can really throw a wrench in your plans. Each run in Marathon is ever-changing, and it’s stunning how Bungie managed to pull this off with only four maps.
That being said, its biggest issues are its user interfaces and controls. They’re clunky as the similar actions don’t use the same input. For example, I’ll open up a box with the square button on my controller, yet I have to place the items from that box into my inventory with the X button. It messes with your brain and doesn’t feel intuitive. Even after dozens of hours playing, I still have to think about what to press sometimes. The font is hard to read too, even if you’re playing on a big screen. There are no options to increase the size or anything. Hopefully, that can be fixed in a later update.
According to Helldivers 2 developer Arrowhead Games, “A game for everyone is a game for no one.” Marathon is the exact opposite of that. It won’t have the widespread appeal that Halo or Destiny does. But it showcases Bungie at its absolute best, putting all of its knowledge and skills to create something extraordinary.
The verdict: A satisfying slow burnMarathon has exemplary gunplay, level and audio design, as well as top-tier aesthetics that keep your eyes glued to the screen. Even the lore got me interested in its factions and overall universe. It may not be for everyone. It’s a hardcore game, and if you can meet it on its own terms, you’ll have one hell of a time.


