Bungie’s extraction shooter Marathon has added a locked Cryo Archive map to the menu amid its ongoing ARG puzzle, now at the sixth of seven steps. Access requires reaching level 25 and establishing connections with all six factions, serving as a barrier against low-level griefers.
A recent update introduced the Cryo Archive—the game's fourth map, set on the iconic Marathon ship from the 1990s trilogy and billed as its hardest endgame challenge—as a locked option in the menu, accompanied by mysterious in-game mail and hints on the ARG website.
A tweet from @TauCetiGG confirmed the entry conditions: "Unlock ALL Factions – Reach Level 25" (pic.twitter.com/m6NYGv9XPC, March 15, 2026). Eurogamer notes the six factions act as a griefing deterrent for bots and low-level accounts. Kotaku details that connections demand completing introduction contracts for each, with "Introducing: Sekiguchi" proving especially frustrating: players must travel to the perilous Outpost area to inject a biochemical (causing damage every 20 seconds), then scan with a medical device elsewhere on the map. Risks from other players often lead to death and restarts; Reddit threads report hours of solo attempts, with groups eventually succeeding after multiple tries.
This builds on nearly two weeks of community ARG efforts—from Perimeter map terminals and website camera unlocks (as covered in earlier updates)—expanding via Discord, clues, videos, and steps across Dire Marsh and Outpost maps. Previously estimated by dataminers at 13 steps, the puzzle has streamlined to seven. Cinematic teases like 'A New Future Beyond the Sun' on the Marathon YouTube channel offer narrative glimpses, with map previews on the official site signaling the ARG's imminent conclusion.