/-/S'pht-Translator-Active/-/


Scrapbook Pages 15-16
Posted By: REBDate: 3/2/02 2:41 p.m.

In Response To: Scrapbook Pages 13-14 (REB)

Page 15

Marathon 2: Durandal

Bungie's announcement of Marathon 2: Durandal on July 19th 1995, took Marathon fans by surprise. Most of them were anxiously awaiting the Marathon 20/10 Scenario Pack, a collection levels and additional network options advertised on a flyer in the Marathon box. A number of people had also discovered a message from Jason Jones buried in Marathon''s resource Fork, promising a "network upgrade" with an extra weapon (the shotgun, if you must know). Few people guessed that a full sequel to Marathon was in the pipeline... especially since Jason Jones had since stated that he tended to dislike sequels because many only existed to milk an obvious cash cow. In hindsight though, the clues were there: Bungie staffers had occasionally bemoaned the absence of features that were not added to Marathon due to time constraints, and the story left many questions unanswered.

Marathon 2 arose out of the potential to improve on the original game and continue the story. Bungie's press release made it clear that Marathon 2 would incorporate more than just a collection of new levels. The game would sport a new wide-screen graphics format, ambient sounds, new weapons, monsters, and textures, outdoor scenarios, underwater exploration and combat, also further develop the storyline, explaining some of the first game's unanswered questions while throwing more bizarre elements into the plot.

After much soul-searching, Bungie halted development of the Marathon 20/10 Scenario Pack. Doug Zartman relates how the decision was reached: "For a while we thought we could fir in a 20/10 pack and still get M2 out that year. It wasn't very long before we decided that if we did the 20/10 pack, M2 might get slighted, the levels might not be as carefully designed and might not make it for '95. M2 was the more exciting product and a higher priority, so 20/10 got canned. A couple of the maps intended for the 20/10 pack were retextured and refitted for M2."

Macintosh clone-makers Power Computing announced that they would distribute a sneak preview of Marathon 2 on CD at the Boston Macworld Expo in August. Diehard Mac gamers made plans for a pilgrimage to Boston. Those that couldn't make it joined a long waiting list hoping for a spare copy if "The Disc" once the show was over. Bungie announced that an official demo - which promised to be more representative of the full game than the Macworld preview version - would be released shortly after the Expo ended. Macworld came and went, but the demo did not appear, much to the frustration of Marathoners who hadn't been able to obtain a copy of the Preview. Two months passed before Bungie completed and released the official demo.

The announcement of the sequel caused a flurry of activity on the internet. Discussion of the new Marathon flooded the newsgroups. Within days, a few people claimed to have played the preview game; once again, someone leaked the game to the 'Net. A collective Bungie scream echoed through the streets of Chicago.

While people busily discussed the leaked preview, Marathon fans online witnessed the quiet arrival of a web site which would radically alter people's appreciation for the Marathon series. The Marathon's Story Page, a site maintained by Hamish Sinclair, went live on Sept 19th. The site focused on a somewhat neglected aspect of the game: the plot. In the nine months since Marathon's release, sporadic plot discussions had taken place on the usual newsgroups, but most of these dealt with the popular "Is the player a cyborg?" question. Hamish Sinclair recognized this mystery as merely the tip of a much larger iceberg. Marathon's plot contained more depth than possibly any game which had come before.

The story in Marathon 2 picked up where the first game left off. At the end of the first Marathon, Durandal teleports the player into a stasis chamber. Seventeen years later, Durandal releases the player on Lh'owon, the conquered S'pht homeworld. Durandal is determined to get his hands on a "space-folding" technology developed by the mysterious Jjaro. Certain that the secret of this

Page 16 (Pictures)

Picture 1: Sketch of the M2 compiler. You can still see this early compiler on the water pattern buffer texture.
Text: The new compiler

Picture 2: 3 Sketches of the magnum pistol. Over the 3rd sketch it's written: "twist this fucker back a little."
Text: GUNS! GUNS! GUNS!

Picture 3: (see text).
Text: Concept sketch of an slaved Bob. He never made it into the game.

Picture 4: Sketch of the Nar. You can see Rob McLees' signature (RM 95) and an note: "looks like a..." The rest is cutout.
Text: The Nar also never made it into the game.

Picture 5: See text.
Text: Sketches of the Drones.

Picture 6: See text.
Text: Energy Recharge.

Picture 7: Sketch of the Tick's dead sequence.
Text: Clean up in Aisle 8!

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Pre-2004 Posts

Replies:

Is the Marathon scrapbook online somewhere?zudo 2/23/02 3:54 p.m.
     Sorry, don't think so. I'd like to see it too. *NM*Callie21V 2/23/02 8:06 p.m.
           Look What The Cat Drug In... (not typo)REB 2/25/02 1:38 a.m.
                 Re: Look What The Cat Drug In... (not typo)Fernando. 2/25/02 1:42 a.m.
                       Re: Look What The Cat Drug In... (not typo)REB 2/25/02 3:04 a.m.
                             Re: Look What The Cat Drug In... (not typo)zudo 2/25/02 3:09 a.m.
                             Re: Look What The Cat Drug In... (not typo)Fernando. 2/25/02 3:46 a.m.
                                   Abandonware?REB 2/25/02 5:24 a.m.
                                         Re: Abandonware?Mark Levin 2/25/02 6:48 a.m.
                                         Re: Abandonware?/hamish please readFernando. 2/25/02 6:49 a.m.
                                               ReadingHamish Sinclair 2/25/02 9:30 a.m.
                                                     Re: ReadingM-Class 2/25/02 3:15 p.m.
                                                           Re: ReadingDjof 2/25/02 5:00 p.m.
                                         Re: Abandonware?Callie21V 2/25/02 9:38 a.m.
                                         Re: Abandonware?M-Class 2/25/02 3:09 p.m.
                                               Re: Abandonware?Vid Boi 2/26/02 2:58 a.m.
                                                     Re: Abandonware?Hamish Sinclair 2/26/02 5:12 a.m.
                                                           Re: Abandonware?Dan Aris 2/26/02 6:06 a.m.
                                                                 Is that soon or Soon™ ?zudo 2/26/02 8:16 a.m.
                                                                 Is that soon or Soon™ ? *NM*zudo 2/26/02 8:16 a.m.
                                                           Oh yea, the action sack...I forgot that one. *NT*Vid Boi 2/26/02 8:29 a.m.
                                         Re: Abandonware?Malcolm 11/6/02 6:37 a.m.
                 Thanks REB! Great work! *NM*Callie21V 2/25/02 9:37 a.m.
                 Scrapbook Pages 3 - 4REB 2/25/02 11:37 p.m.
                       Re: Scrapbook Pages 3 - 4Hamish Sinclair 2/26/02 12:14 a.m.
                             Re: Scrapbook Pages 3 - 4REB 2/26/02 4:20 a.m.
                             Re: Scrapbook Pages 3 - 4Matt 2/26/02 11:09 p.m.
                                   Re: Scrapbook Pages 3 - 4Hamish Sinclair 2/27/02 12:25 a.m.
                                         Bungie Live Up To It's Promise...REB 3/1/02 2:34 a.m.
                                               Re: Bungie Live Up To It's Promise...Hamish Sinclair 3/1/02 12:21 p.m.
                                                     Re: Bungie Live Up To It's Promise...REB 3/3/02 4:30 a.m.
                                                           Re: Bungie Live Up To It's Promise...Matt 3/5/02 5:31 p.m.
                                                                 Re: Bungie Live Up To It's Promise...Hamish Sinclair 3/6/02 12:07 a.m.
                                                                       Re: Bungie Live Up To It's Promise...Matt 3/6/02 12:05 p.m.
                                                                             Re: Bungie Live Up To It's Promise...Hamish Sinclair 3/6/02 1:03 p.m.
                                                                             Re: Bungie Live Up To It's Promise...Speaker-To-Animals 7/3/03 10:09 p.m.
     I would if I had a scanner *NM*Vid Boi 2/24/02 3:38 a.m.
           I'd scan it all but i dont have the scrapbook!Ernie TMBM 2/25/02 6:54 p.m.
                 Re: I'd scan it all but i dont have the scrapbook!Callie21V 2/26/02 2:26 p.m.
     Actually...Hippieman [B.Org] 2/26/02 1:23 p.m.
           Re: Actually...Pedrof 2/26/02 3:37 p.m.
                 Re: Actually... (+Hamish)Djof 2/26/02 5:00 p.m.
                 Re: Actually...Matt 2/26/02 11:07 p.m.
                       Re: Actually...Hippieman [B.Org] 3/1/02 12:09 a.m.
           Re: Actually...archon 2/27/02 12:28 a.m.
                 Re: Actually...Hamish Sinclair 2/27/02 12:40 a.m.
                       Re: Actually...archon 2/27/02 9:18 a.m.
           Scrapbook Pages 9-10REB 2/27/02 5:49 a.m.
                 Typo!REB 2/27/02 5:55 a.m.
                       Scrapbook Pages 11-12REB 2/28/02 2:30 a.m.
                             Scrapbook Pages 13-14REB 3/1/02 4:47 a.m.
                                   Scrapbook Pages 15-16REB 3/2/02 2:41 p.m.
                                         Scrapbook Pages 17-18REB 3/3/02 4:21 p.m.
                                               Scrapbook Pages 19-22REB 3/4/02 9:01 a.m.
                                                     Scrapbook Pages 23-26REB 3/5/02 1:22 p.m.
                                                           I Want My Zombie Pfhor!REB 3/5/02 1:28 p.m.
                                                           Re: I Want My Zombie Pfhor!Callie21V 3/5/02 3:59 p.m.
                                                                 Re: I Want My Zombie Pfhor!Vid Boi 3/5/02 4:49 p.m.
                                                                 Re: I Want My Zombie Pfhor!Djof 3/5/02 5:10 p.m.
                                                                 Re: I Want My Zombie Pfhor!Boomer 3/6/02 4:18 a.m.
                                                           Scrapbook Pages 27-31REB 3/6/02 9:56 a.m.
                                                                 Thanks Raul! :-) *NM*Hamish Sinclair 3/6/02 10:09 a.m.
                                                                       Re: Thanks Raul! :-)D-M.A. 3/8/02 1:46 a.m.
                                                                             Re: Thanks Raul! :-)REB 3/8/02 9:48 a.m.
                                                                                   Re: Thanks Raul! :-)Hamish Sinclair 3/8/02 1:14 p.m.
                                                                                         Speaking of typos and errors...poena.dare #CP# 3/8/02 2:03 p.m.
                                                                                               Re: Speaking of typos and errors...Hamish Sinclair 3/9/02 4:52 a.m.
                                                                                               Then There Were Eightpoena.dare #CP# 3/9/02 9:19 a.m.
                                                                                         Scrapbook Pages 5-8REB 3/9/02 1:09 p.m.
                                                                                               Whoa! the man is back! Nice post. :-) *NM*Hamish Sinclair 3/9/02 4:11 p.m.
                                                                 Re: One last word...mnemesis 3/6/02 11:26 a.m.
                                                                 Re: Scrapbook Pages 27-31Vid Boi 3/11/02 4:18 p.m.
                                                                       Isn't F**k Microsoft 2 words?REB 3/11/02 6:41 p.m.
                                                                             Re: Isn't F**k Microsoft 2 words?Vid Boi 3/12/02 4:28 a.m.
                                                     Re: Scrapbook Pages 19-22Andrew Nagy 3/7/02 6:51 a.m.



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