Bungie extended its free play week for Marathon after customers encountered confusion over the Deluxe Edition pricing. Players saw what appeared to be the deluxe edition offered for just $14 during the promotion, only to discover they purchased merely a cosmetics bundle rather than the full game. This follows server issues that forced emergency maintenance shortly after the game's free trial launched, which had initially helped the game surge to around 40,000 Steam players.

The confusion stems from how Sony lists Marathon versions on the PlayStation Store. When users add the free trial to their library, the system treats it as owning the base game and shows a $14 price difference for the deluxe edition. However, paying this difference only unlocks cosmetic content, not additional gameplay features. PlayStation's store design creates misleading pricing that doesn't clearly distinguish between cosmetic upgrades and full game purchases.

This pricing mishap compounds challenges for Bungie, which has staked its future on Marathon as it phases out Destiny 2. Despite receiving positive reviews, Marathon has struggled to maintain player engagement. The extended free week, launched alongside the game's second season, aims to boost player numbers amid growing skepticism about the title's long-term viability.