Will Marathon Have Wipes? If Yes, How Do They Work?

Bungie’s extraction shooter Marathon is inching its release on March 5, as players are already dropping onto Tau Ceti IV as cybernetic runners in its ongoing free-to-play Server Slam. As players continue to scavenge gear and battle rival squads while battling UESC reinforcements, exfil is one of the most important things they must focus on.

Like every extraction shooter, dying means losing all the loot you scavenged so far, and while you can store your loot in the vault for future use, one lingering question players have in mind is if Marathon will have wipes at launch. While that does not apply to any loot you collect at Server Slam, this may change the way you plan your runs and play Marathon when it launches. Luckily, we’ve got the answer for you right here.

Are There Wipes in Marathon?

Yes, there are wipes in Marathon as game director Joe Ziegler confirmed that Bungie is planning a seasonal reset once every three months.

In an interview in China, Ziegler revealed, “Each season in Marathon will be a fresh start. We envision each season as a months-long ‘roguelike adventure.’ To implement this concept, each season will incorporate new content and systems, substantially reshaping the seasonal gameplay.” As per Ziegler, Bungie is planning four seasons per year, with a wipe between each one, spanning roughly every three months.

Furthermore, when a new season begins, the scavenged weapons, gear, and loot will be wiped clean from player inventory, and every Runner will get a fresh start to level the playing field.

How Wipes Work in Marathon

Marathon wipes will occur once every quarter of the year, every time a new season drops. As soon as a new season is released, the loot-based progression will reset. This includes your stash of extracted weapons, implants, mods, gear, faction rank, seasonal upgrades, in-game currency balances, and seasonal power level.

The most affected of all is the faction system, which may be a letdown to some players who spend hours completing faction contracts and buying upgrades. Marathon will bring six factions at launch, each with unique contracts, reputation tracks, and upgrade trees.

Ranking up with a faction unlocks boosts and perks that last the entire season. But when a wipe arrives, that faction’s progress resets. As per Bungie, this makes early-season faction choices meaningful since the order you invest your time into factions shapes what items you carry in your inventory in the opening weeks.

Marathon Wipes: Resets vs. Carry Overs

If you’re still worried about Marathon wipes and are already panicking, don’t worry too much about it, as almost every extraction game, even Escape from Tarkov and Arc Raiders go through progression wipes. However, Bungie has drawn a clear line between what resets and what stays. Here’s a clear table highlighting what will reset vs. what carries over in Marathon wipes:

This hybrid approach makes Marathon wipes a bit more forgiving than other games, which do full account resets.

Are you excited about Marathon Season 1 coming at launch? Tell us in the comments below!