Marathon Infinity
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Marathon Infinity |
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| Developer(s) | Bungie Software |
| Publisher(s) | Bungie Software |
| Latest version | 1.5 |
| Release date(s) | October 15, 1996 |
| Genre(s) | First-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer |
| Platform(s) | Linux, Mac OS |
| Input | Keyboard, mouse |
Marathon Infinity is the third and final game in the Marathon series of science fiction first-person shooter computer games from Bungie Software. The game was released on October 15, 1996 and included more levels than its predecessor Marathon 2. These were larger, and formed part of a more intricate plot that spanned both space and time. The underlying engine of the game changed little from the one in Marathon 2, and many levels can be played unmodified in both games. The only significant additions were the Jjaro ship texture set, multiple paths between levels, vacuum-enabled humans carrying fusion weapons (called "Vacuum Bobs" or "VacBobs") and a new weapon. Marathon Infinity, unlike Marathon 2, was originally only released for the Apple Macintosh.
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[edit] Story
Some gamers consider the story in the single-player version of Marathon Infinity, titled “Blood Tides of Lh’owon”, confusing. For example, it begins as if large parts, if not all, of the events in Marathon 2 had not happened. Theories differ on exactly what happens in this game, but the consensus is that the player somehow jumps between alternative realities via Jjaro technology, seeking to prevent a chaotic entity, the W’rkncacnter, from being released from Lh'owon's dying sun. For example, the player begins the game as Durandal's ally, only to be transported to a reality where Durandal did not capture the player after the events of Marathon. As such, he is controlled by the Pfhor-tortured AI Tycho.
After multiple instances of these "jumps", the player (seemingly the only being who realizes he is being transported between possible realities) activates the ancient Jjaro station, preventing the chaotic entity's release. The ending screen of Infinity leaves the story's resolution open-ended, taking place millions of years after the events of Marathon Infinity.
Despite the player’s being teleported to a Jjaro station by Durandal and left with a grim message, both Durandal and Earth did survive in the original timeline as can be seen at the end of Marathon 2.
Another theory is that, at the end of Marathon: Durandal, he said that the Pfhor would release the trih xeem, a powerful Jjaro artifact that could cause a sun to go Nova. In Infinity, we are told that a chaotic being known as the W'rkncacnter resides inside the sun of Lh'owon. So, in short: The Pfhor use the trih xeem at the end of Durandal, which unsleashes the W'rkncacnter, causing a reality shift, that is where you start at Infinity.
[edit] Multiplayer modes
- Every Man For Himself
- The objective here is to kill everyone else and not die. The player with the best kill ratio (kills to deaths) wins.
- Kill The Guy With The Ball
- The objective is to possess the ball (which is actually a skull) for the longest amount of time. When carrying the ball, running is disabled. Also, the player can’t use any weapons when in possession of the ball, however, pressing the fire key will drop the ball and then reenable firing. The motion sensor displays an orange indicator indicating the location of the ball.
- King Of The Hill
- The objective is to stand on the "hill" the longest. "Hill" in this sense is just a figure of speech, it could be anywhere on the map and is indicated by the orange pointer on the motion sensor. Note that every player is trying to do the same, and others will most likely try to kill the player if he gets in their way.
- Tag
- The first person to die is "it". If the player is "it", he can tag someone (by killing them) and then they are "it". The objective is to be "it" the least. The magic orange indicator points to whomever is "it".
- Team Play
- Team play divides everyone into teams by the colors chosen in the Join or Setup dialog. The objective of each team is to kill members of different teams the most. The player can see his teammate's point of view by pressing the delete key.
- Cooperative
- The game scenario can be played cooperatively with other network players. The objective is to complete the Marathon Infinity scenario as a team (i.e. cooperatively). All players teleport to the next level when the first one does. When a player dies, he drops his stuff (don’t die in the lava with the shotgun!) Save is disabled when using this feature.
[edit] Editing tools
One of the most dramatic improvements in the game was the inclusion of Bungie's own level-creating software, Forge, and their physics and in-game graphics editor, Anvil. Forge and Anvil allowed a new generation of players to create their own levels and scenarios using the same tools as the Bungie developers themselves. Another improvement was the ability to include separate monster, weapons, and physics definitions for each level, a feature heavily used by Double Aught, who designed the Marathon Infinity levels.
[edit] Trivia
- In going from Marathon 2 to Marathon Infinity, Bungie was given a joke award by MacFormat magazine for "largest version number increase".
- The open source game engine based on the source code for Marathon 2 is called Aleph One, the next "number" after ∞.
- In Red vs. Blue, a machinima based on the Halo series Bungie created after the Marathon trilogy, the character Church sets off a ten-megaton bomb that sends his allies forward in time to Halo's sequel, Halo 2. At the same time, he is blown backwards in time into Marathon Infinity.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Marathon's Story: Ne Cede Malis all the game's terminals and game information.
- Marathon Infinity: Overview Traxus Project's article about the game.
- Marathon Infinity Spoiler Guide
- Marathon Infinity at MobyGames
- [1] Download this game for free for both Apple Macintosh and PC.
| Non-series Games | Gnop! • Operation Desert Storm • Minotaur: The Labyrinths of Crete • Abuse • Oni • Pathways Into Darkness • Pimps at Sea | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Marathon Games | Marathon • Marathon 2: Durandal • Marathon Infinity | ||
| Myth Games | Myth: The Fallen Lords • Myth II: Soulblighter | ||
| Halo Games | Halo: Combat Evolved • Halo 2 • Halo 3 • Halo Wars • Untitled Halo Project | ||
