Taking a Look at the ‘Marathon’ Collector’s Edition
With Marathon releasing earlier this month, Bungie has also launched some physical merchandise, including hats, T-shirts, and even a WEAVEworm plush. The highlight of these offerings is the Marathon Collector’s Edition, which comes in two different flavors—one that has a Steam code for the Deluxe Edition of the game (for $230) and one that does not ($170). There is no version with PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X codes.
Bungie provided me with the non-Steam version, which includes:
- A statue of the Thief shell at one-sixth scale that has LED lights
- Six 4-by-6-inch art cards that feature the Runners of Marathon
- A three-inch embroidered patch
- A silkworm miniature
- A lenticular poster
Everything comes in a hexagonal box designed to look like the loot crates found on Tau Ceti IV, and the statue has a USB-A to USB-C cable to power the display—I originally couldn’t locate the cord until I went to break down the actual box it was shipped in; it turned out to be underneath the Styrofoam packaging, so if yours is missing, check there.
One aspect of Marathon I’ve really enjoyed is the art design and color palette, and all the included items nail that aesthetic. While it all looks good and appears to be high quality, clearly the Thief statue is the Collector’s Edition’s centerpiece. It’s sturdy, weighing around five pounds, and well-designed, showing off a lot of detail work in the shell. The base has it kneeling in the Dire Marsh over the remains of what appears to be a destroyed UESC robot (though the Bungie site refers to it as another Runner).
While I do like the way it looks, I will call out a couple of things I didn’t love. The LED lighting is a bit spartan (and not in the Halo way) with two vertical white lights. Even in a completely dark room, the effect is understated. The statue also needs to be plugged in to light up, which limits where you can display it if you want it illuminated. I would’ve preferred something rechargeable. It also feels like the plug and power button are on the wrong side. In other words, if you want the Thief to face forward, the cable plugs into the side rather than the back.
Beyond that, the other items are nice. I don’t have anywhere to sew a Marathon patch on or the room to display the box—it opens to show a Dire Marsh setting you could use as a background for your statue—but I already found a spot for the silkworm, which is adorable.
Whether the Marathon Collector’s Edition is worth the price is wholly subjective. So, I will just say what I received was well-designed and a quality representation of what I’ve seen in the game. If you like Marathon and want something to display, I doubt you’ll be disappointed.