Bungie has officially released the intro cinematic for its Marathon closed alpha, which commences on April 23rd. It provides a brief primer on the Runners, their mission on Tau Ceti IV and much more. Check it out below. The Runners’ goals revolve around salvaging (and extracting) resources from the planet. Interestingly, the United Earth Space Council, which played a major part in the original trilogy, is also present. Players will encounter Runners from the faction, and dealing with them is up to their “discretion.” However, the biggest surprise is the reveal of ONI, the mandatory support AI that accompanies players and helps transfer and reboot their consciousness into a new shell. The name, of course, references Bungie’s 2001 third-person action title, and given its cyberpunk nature, you have to wonder if the universe ties into Marathon or if it’s just a neat Easter egg. The Marathon alpha is available until May 4th, and the full game will launch on September 23rd for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC.