History VideoGame / MarathonExpandedUniverse

Links to nine of the most popular fan scenarios can be found on [[https://alephone.lhowon.org/scenarios.html#more Lhowon.org's scenarios page]]; a few others include [[https://sourceforge.net/projects/emr3/ Excalibur: Morgana's Revenge]], [[https://citadel.lhowon.org/scenarios/pfhjoueur/ Pfh'Joueur]], and [[https://citadel.lhowon.org/scenarios/return-to-marathon/ Return to Marathon]]. Various other mods, enhancements and maps are available [[http://www.simplici7y.com/ here]] (newer; backup archive is [[https://lochnits.com/s7/ here]]), [[http://fileball.whpress.com/ here]] or [[http://www.rising-studios.com/Marathon/fileball/Fileball%20Archive/marathon/ here]] (older), or [[http://archives.bungie.org/ here]] (oldest). For those willing to go down the emulation route (which is also necessary to run some of those old files), Macintosh Garden also has [[https://macintoshgarden.org/games/marathon-trilogy-box-set the Trilogy Box Set's Definitive Map Collection]], which contains around a thousand add-ons for the games. If you find yourself stuck, you can find completions of many of the mods [[https://youtube.com/c/MarathonVidmaster on YouTube]][[note]]This channel's primary curator is also one of the developers of mods such as ''Eternal'' and the upcoming ''Tempus Irae Redux''[[/note]]. A massive number of terminals, maps, and even flowcharts showing how levels connect can be found [[https://lochnits.com/marathon/scenarios/ here]].

The game is still under development; the team hopes to have an official 1.3 release in late 2024 featuring many more additions, including updated weapons, a massively expanded soundtrack (which now runs for over seven hours), new monster sprites[[note]]As of March 2024, these include Compilers, Fighters, Troopers, Hunters, two different Enforcers, new Drones and Juggernauts for the fourth chapter, new Bobs for the final chapter, and the final boss[[/note]], a complete remake of the Pfhor texture set, significant changes to other textures, new landscapes, an expanded and rewritten story, new characters, refinements to existing characters, a new final boss fight, several partially or completely remade levels, major changes to the structure of the game's third chapter (including a new level of sorts), a new secret tracker, additional enhancements and additions to level design, CD-quality stereo remixes of many sounds from their sources, major new scripting features that include significant quality-of-life upgrades (such as a more legible overhead map, item sharing and disabled friendly fire in cooperative games, and an optional secret counter and RPG-style monster health display), massive amounts of new terminal art, and more. The sixth preview of 1.3 (which is still very much a work in progress) is [[http://eternal.bungie.org/development available as of March 2024]] (as is a link to a [[https://www.dropbox.com/sh/mnu8pjd2yuatfyi/AAD4hMuNieQCvKzP56WYWgwsa Dropbox folder]] containing the latest development files, when those differ from the most recent preview build). 1.4 or 2.0 releases may still follow 1.3.
* '''''Rubicon''''': If you hear any fan game referred to as ''Marathon 4'', it'll probably be this one.[[note]]Sometimes ''Eternal'' gets the nod instead, since it comes earlier in the player's subjective experience; that would make ''Rubicon'' at least ''Marathon 5'' if we're numbering by internal chronology rather than release date.[[/note]] This scenario features two different timelines (three in the more commonly available ''X'' re-release) and an absolutely massive number of levels, meaning that you'll have to play it at least three times if you want to see everything. The story is generally felt to have recaptured the feeling of the original games more closely than any other total conversion's has; it helps that there is a dream story that's essentially a direct continuation of ''Infinity''[='=]s. There are a massive number of new monsters, textures, and weapons, plus some of the most disorienting levels that the engine has ever seen, and you ''will'' experience a MindScrew at least once. Also, it's [[SceneryPorn frequently gorgeous]]. ''Rubicon'' was created by several people, but D. Scott Brown and Chris Lund contributed the biggest portion of the work.\\

Ryoko has also provided some quite candid [[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-_EnUuI9PUoIncYlqgWainfOUoZAXhCY YouTube commentary]] for the first thirty-five levels of the game, which is a copious source of WordOfGod about the scenario. (This commentary was for an older release that didn't include the secret levels "Gateway to Audacity" through "Artemis Anomaly"; they were meant to be a project called ''Thunderstorm'' before Ryoko abandoned it and stuck them in version 1.3 as secrets accessible from "Swan Song". Later releases also address some of his self-criticisms, like "Escape Two Thousand"'s combat.) The most recent release as of January 2023 is 1.4.1, a minor bug fix; 1.4, released the previous year, added features like a map overlay that provides game and level stats, a remastered soundtrack, ammo limits on Total Carnage, a new skull obtained by killing all monsters on a level, a secret for hardcore players that strips the player's arsenal to the starting pistol after each level (''Phoenix'' was balanced so that players of sufficient skill could feasibly complete Total Carnage pistol starts without resorting to fists), and gameplay rebalance for certain levels (the aforementioned "Escape Two Thousand", which had been a common source of complaints, being perhaps the most notable). 1.4.1 is planned as the final word on this incarnation of ''Phoenix''; the next release, not expected until at least 2024, is planned to be a major overhaul that will replace several levels outright and add major new secrets to others.\\

For those interested in creating content for Aleph One, meanwhile, the codirector of ''Eternal'' has put together a set of [[https://aaronfreed.github.io/mapmaking.html mapping tips]] that may help, including a detailed setup guide for Weland, the primary program now used for mapping, along with the two texturing scripts most commonly used with it, Visual Mode.lua and Vasara (the latter of which the guide's author is also now in the process of updating). People on the [[https://discord.gg/c7rEVgY the Marathon Discord]] may also be able to help (note that #development, counterintuitively, is only for engine and editor development; questions about mapmaking go in #forge, even though Forge is now rarely used).

* DirectContinuousLevels: Used quite often in mods. In most cases, this was due to limitations of the engine forcing the levels to be split up: each level could only have a max of 1024 polygons, and could get wonky if draw distances were too large or had too many objects on the map at the same time. Even with polygon limits now a lesser consideration[[note]]Although the engine’s theoretical limit is much higher than 1,800 polygons, it does start to get a bit unstable above around 1,850, though exactly where depends upon how many and what kinds of objects mapmakers use - sound objects are particularly liable to cause problems - as well as the physical size and density of the polygons themselves)[[/note]], physical space considerations may still cause developers to split up levels, as that particular aspect of the engine hasn’t changed in over twenty years.[[note]]It’s possible for the player to ''view'' much further without a crash than it used to be, but the amount of space maps can span hasn’t changed.[[/note]] Other times, a level is split because the individual physics of a level (like hard vacuum) apply to the entirety of a level and can't be deactivated per section of a level; in this case, a terminal may tell you it will teleport you to the pressurized section, and the game will teleport you to the next level in which you're standing in the next area.[[note]]Due to the original trilogy relying on the player's ability to see what effect switches and such have on other parts of the level, many mod developers will render out the section you're about to travel to in the first level, and the old section you were in in the next level, for continuity's sake. Considering this was the go-to aesthetical choice in the late 90s, it's rather impressive this much architectural detail was put in.[[/note]]

** ''Istoria'' uses this mechanic exclusively.

* VariableMix: As of ''Eternal'' 1.3 preview 6, the level "We Met Once in the Garden" does this. When the boss fight with [[spoiler:Hathor]] starts, the music fades from the standard mix to a more metallic version. When it ends, it fades to the metallic version to a mix of the two. [[https://pfhorums.com/viewtopic.php?p=189633#p189633 According to the codirector]], this was inspired by similar mechanics in games like ''VideoGame/FTLFasterThanLight'' and ''VideoGame/CadenceOfHyrule'', which both have at least two versions of most of their songs that they switch between depending on gameplay events.

*** "We Met Once in the Garden" is an unusual case, as it's an already impressive 11:29 in-game; however, as of preview 6, there are actually three separate mixes of it that the game shifts between when certain plot-critical events occur (a feature only recently added to Aleph One). Thus, the OST release is currently slated to feature a single '''''35:44''''' track that features all three mixes in succession, making it by far the longest track on the soundtrack.

* HellIsThatNoise: ''Apotheosis X'' does this deliberately with "Sepulchre", the soundtrack to "The Great Fen"; it's constructed around a hellish backwards drum loop that's utterly paranoia-inducing (in the best possible way).

Version 1.2.1, released in early November 2021, is the current "stable" release.[[note]]The team had originally renumbered 1.2.1 to 1.3 because people had submitted so many new features, but since it'd been nearly two and a half years since 1.2.0's release and Windows users kept having problems with it, the devs decided in mid-2021 to polish up an old 1.2.1 beta for release as a stopgap.[[/note]] Its biggest changes include a fix to a nasty crash on the 32-bit Windows build of Aleph One, completely remastered sounds, new sounds, faster loading times, gameplay refinements to a few levels, and several fixes to [[UnintentionallyUnwinnable potential game locks]]. However, \\

The game is still under development; the team hopes to have an official 1.3 release ready in 2024 featuring many more additions, including updated weapons, a massively expanded soundtrack (which now runs for over seven hours), new monster sprites[[note]]As of March 2024, these include Compilers, Fighters, Troopers, Hunters, two different Enforcers, new Drones and Juggernauts for the fourth chapter, new Bobs for the final chapter, and the final boss[[/note]], a complete remake of the Pfhor texture set, significant changes to other textures, new landscapes, an expanded and rewritten story, new characters, refinements to existing characters, a new final boss fight, several partially or completely remade levels, major changes to the structure of the game's third chapter (including a new level of sorts), a new secret tracker, additional enhancements and additions to level design, CD-quality stereo remixes of many sounds from their sources, major new scripting features that include significant quality-of-life upgrades (such as a more legible overhead map, item sharing and disabled friendly fire in cooperative games, and an optional secret counter and RPG-style monster health display), massive amounts of new terminal art, and more. The fifth preview of 1.3 (which is still very much a work in progress) is [[http://eternal.bungie.org/development available as of February 2023]] (as is a link to a [[https://www.dropbox.com/sh/mnu8pjd2yuatfyi/AAD4hMuNieQCvKzP56WYWgwsa Dropbox folder]] containing the latest development files, when those differ from the most recent preview build). 1.4 or 2.0 releases may still follow 1.3.

** ''Eternal'' 1.3 has numerous examples, often incorporating work from multiple arrangers, which the codirector has called "ProgressiveRock-style epics". These can all be found in Ogg Vorbis format on the Dropbox build linked on ''Eternal''[='=]s development page (navigate to Eternal-Data/Music), or a [[https://1drv.ms/u/s!AuD0MykSsmaRnUJawmCYx8my2zSS?e=ECcjQf FLAC release]] linked in the readme. For the sake of brevity, we'll restrict this list to examples over nine minutes long as of Feburary 2024[[note]]there are an additional fourteen examples between six and nine minutes long[[/note]] and only list the level and the length of its respective music (as of the forthcoming 1.3 preview 6); the developers also have a [[https://1drv.ms/b/s!AuD0MykSsmaRogKoxid7o3QXrYBa?e=ZcC1Wg detailed track list]] with additional soundtrack metadata. The soundtrack as a whole is also ''definitely'' an example of this trope - it runs for over seven hours.

A second re-release, titled ''Tempus Irae Redux'', has been in development since April 2020. Features include higher-resolution graphics with glow and parallax mapping; new and remastered sounds (many in stereo); fixes to several recurring complaints about level design; fixes to potential soft locks in cooperative play; a new secret level; another new level that bridges the original ''Tempus Irae'' and ''The Lost Levels''; a soundtrack; and more. A playlist containing development videos from ''Redux'' can be found [[https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoysJW6pXQ6kpii7XfbzW65NP6IZxbK4n here]], with [[https://youtu.be/TfBijnOBZ_w?list=PLoysJW6pXQ6kpii7XfbzW65NP6IZxbK4n "Gates of Delirium"]], [[https://youtu.be/v=pZJhqK7SReE?list=PLoysJW6pXQ6kpii7XfbzW65NP6IZxbK4n "Ameseno, Italy"]] (extensive revisions of existing levels) and [[https://youtu.be/C1QgBOwSgz0?list=PLoysJW6pXQ6kpii7XfbzW65NP6IZxbK4n "Il grande silenzio"]] (the new secret level; Italian for ''Film/TheGreatSilence'') perhaps being good starting places. (The last video also contains "Mt. Vesuvius" and "I Can Feel It", two other levels that received major revisions.) ''Redux'' will feature all 37 solo levels of the original ''Tempus Irae''[[note]]with "Mt. Vesuvius" and "Mt. Vesuvius 2", which were only separated due to now-deprecated engine restrictions, recombined into one level[[/note]], all 12 solo levels of ''Tempus Irae 2: The Lost Levels''[[note]]with "Il spazio pagano" [Italian: "The Pagan Space"] and "...in fin dei conti..." [Italian: "After All"; literally "In the End of the Accounts"] likewise recombined, for the same reasons as "Mt. Vesuvius"[[/note]], two new solo levels[[note]]the aforementioned "Il grande silenzio" and a level called "The Library of Babel" bridging ''Tempus Irae'' and ''The Lost Levels''[[/note]], all 20 net maps that shipped with ''Tempus Irae'', and all 12 net maps that shipped with ''The Lost Levels''; since two pairs of levels have been combined, this makes for a total of 49 solo levels, 32 net levels, and 81 levels total. The creators opened it to limited beta testing in October 2023 and are tentatively hoping for an end-of-the-year release, though they'll probably be the first to admit they've overshot several past estimates.

The most recent official release is currently 1.2.1, released in early November 2021.[[note]]The team had originally renumbered 1.2.1 to 1.3 because people had submitted so many new features, but since it'd been nearly two and a half years since 1.2.0's release and Windows users kept having problems with it, the devs decided in mid-2021 to polish up an old 1.2.1 beta for release as a stopgap.[[/note]] Its biggest changes include a fix to a nasty crash on the 32-bit Windows build of Aleph One, completely remastered sounds, new sounds, faster loading times, gameplay refinements to a few levels, and several fixes to [[UnintentionallyUnwinnable potential game locks]].\\

The game is still under development; the team hopes to have an official 1.3 release ready in 2023 featuring many more additions, including updated weapons, a massively expanded soundtrack (which now runs for over six hours), new monster sprites[[note]]As of February 2023, these include Compilers, Fighters, Troopers, Hunters, two different Enforcers, a new Bob for the final chapter, and the final boss[[/note]], a complete remake of the Pfhor texture set, significant changes to other textures, new landscapes, an expanded and rewritten story, new characters, refinements to existing characters, a new final boss fight, several partially or completely remade levels, major changes to the structure of the game's third chapter (including a new level of sorts), a new secret tracker, additional enhancements and additions to level design, CD-quality stereo remixes of many sounds from their sources, massive amounts of new terminal art, and more. The fifth preview of 1.3 (which is still very much a work in progress) is [[http://eternal.bungie.org/development available as of February 2023]] (as is a link to a [[https://www.dropbox.com/sh/mnu8pjd2yuatfyi/AAD4hMuNieQCvKzP56WYWgwsa Dropbox folder]] containing the latest development files, when those differ from the most recent preview build). 1.4 or 2.0 releases may still follow 1.3.

*** Lastly, a few specific movements would qualify for EpicRocking all by themselves: as mentioned above, Talashar's "Aerival" (11:55) and Aaron Freed's "What About Bob?" (8:19), plus: Solar-Tron's "New Pacific Hfarl" (7:25 in-game, 8:00 OST); Bob & Aaron's "Landing" (7:36)[[note]]which is partly a mash-up with ''VideoGame/RiskOfRain2''[='=]s "A Glacier Eventually Farts" and "The Rain Formerly Known as Purple", courtesy of its composer Chris Christodoulou[[/note]]; Craig & Aaron's "Splash (Marathon)" (6:55); Aaron's "Flowers in Heaven" (6:08); and Talashar's "Bungie Cyber-Thrash Medley" (6:04). An edge case here is Nicholas Singer's "Flowers in Heaven/A Walk in the Woods/The Maw" (6:25), which is actually comprised of two significantly different versions of the same mix placed end-to-end (of which only the first features "The Maw").

* '''''Istoria''''': Essentially ''Marathon'' with elements of role-playing games, [[https://lochnits.com/marathon/istoria/ released]] on April 29, 2023. The gameplay is significantly different than typical ''Marathon'' gameplay, as player selects a class at the start of the game that has an active ability (which the player may activate at specific times) and a passive ability (which is always active), carries an inventory of powerups, and gains the ability to cast spells. ''Istoria'' features ten "levels", although that word doesn't mean what it normally does in the context of ''Marathon'' scenarios, since they are all interconnected, and the player may (and at times must) revisit past levels. It also features a nonlinear story with multiple endings; it is told partly through terminals and partly through a ''VideoGame/PathwaysIntoDarkness''-style "talk to the dead" mechanic. The player must unravel not merely the mysteries of the planet of Istoria and of the mysterious, seemingly long-dead alien race known as the Mrrak that once called it home, but also of their own past.\\

*** Lastly, a few specific movements would qualify for EpicRocking all by themselves: as mentioned above, Talashar's "Aerival" (11:55) and Aaron Freed's "What About Bob?" (8:19), plus: Solar-Tron's "New Pacific Hfarl" (7:25 in-game, 8:00 OST); Bob & Aaron's "Landing" (7:36)[[note]]which is partly a mash-up with ''VideoGame/RiskOfRain2''[='=]s "A Glacier Eventually Farts" and "The Rain Formerly Known as Purple", courtesy of its composer Chris Christodoulou[[/note]]; Craig & Aaron's "Splash (Marathon)" (6:30); Aaron's "Flowers in Heaven" (6:08); and Talashar's "Bungie Cyber-Thrash Medley" (6:04). An edge case here is Nicholas Singer's "Flowers in Heaven/A Walk in the Woods/The Maw" (6:25), which is actually comprised of two significantly different versions of the same mix placed end-to-end (of which only the first features "The Maw").

** As of September 2022, ''Eternal'' 1.3 has several examples, often incorporating work from multiple arrangers, which the codirector has called "ProgressiveRock-style epics". These can all be found in Ogg Vorbis format on the Dropbox build linked on ''Eternal''[='=]s development page (navigate to Eternal-Data/Music), or a [[https://1drv.ms/u/s!AuD0MykSsmaRnUJawmCYx8my2zSS?e=ECcjQf FLAC release]] linked in the readme. For the sake of brevity, we'll restrict this list to examples over nine minutes long as of September 2023[[note]]there are an additional fourteen examples between six and nine minutes long[[/note]] and only list the level and the length of its respective music (as of the forthcoming 1.3 preview 6); the developers also have a [[https://1drv.ms/b/s!AuD0MykSsmaRogKoxid7o3QXrYBa?e=ZcC1Wg detailed track list]] with additional soundtrack metadata.

*** "We Met Once in the Garden": 11:29 in-game, although there are actually three separate versions of this; as of preview 6, the game will shift between these when certain plot-critical events happen in the level, a feature only recently added to Aleph One. (Correspondingly, the OST release will feature either three discrete 12:46 tracks or a single 35:44 track - it's not yet clear which.)

*** "Deja Vu All Over Again": 10:10.

*** "Unlucky Pfhor Some": 9:38 in-game (9:44 OST).
*** "Bug-Eyed in Space": 9:35

*** Lastly, a few specific movements would qualify for EpicRocking all by themselves: as mentioned above, Talashar's "Aerival" (11:55) and Aaron Freed's "What About Bob?" (8:19), plus: Solar-Tron's "New Pacific Hfarl" (7:25 in-game, 8:00 OST); Bob & Aaron's "Landing" (7:28)[[note]]which is partly a mash-up with ''VideoGame/RiskOfRain2''[='=]s "A Glacier Eventually Farts" and "The Rain Formerly Known as Purple", courtesy of its composer Chris Christodoulou[[/note]]; Aaron's "Flowers in Heaven" (6:08); and Talashar's "Bungie Cyber-Thrash Medley" (6:04). An edge case here is Nicholas Singer's "Flowers in Heaven/A Walk in the Woods/The Maw" (6:25), which is actually comprised of two significantly different versions of the same mix placed end-to-end (of which only the first features "The Maw").

** "Run, Coward!": Movement 5 of "Fat Man" twice briefly quotes Music/{{Rush}}'s "[[Music/MovingPicturesAlbum YYZ]]" and paraphrases a section of Music/JohannSebastianBach's "StandardSnippet/ToccataAndFugueInDMinor".