Bungie has rolled out a new update for its sci-fi extraction shooter, Marathon, that decreases the amount of melee damage players can inflict on other Runners with knives and makes bubble shields more scarce, among other tweaks and bug fixes. Runner-to-runner knife damage is being reducedscreenshot: bungieMarathon features a wealth of guns that come in all different shapes and sizes, most of which feel amazing to use, as a hallmark of any great Bungie game is buttery smooth first-person gunplay. However, Runners in Marathon are also automatically kitted with a knife that can be pulled out to increase running speed and, of course deal significant damage to unsuspecting UESC bots and enemy Runners alike.Marathon players who like to stealthily hunt down their targets may be disappointed with this new 1.0.5.3 update, as it reduces the distance players can lunge during a knife attack by 10%. Furthermore, the update reduces the amount of bonus damage Runners receive from their Melee Damage stat by 50%, but only when attacking other Runners; this decrease won’t apply when going for knife kills against UESC bots. In a developer note, Bungie elaborated on the challenge of balancing Marathon‘s knife damage.“Melee in Marathon is intended to be a high-risk but potent method to contest close-quarters weapons like shotguns and submachine guns. However, the breakpoints for quick melee kills show up too early in the Melee Damage stat progression, which means additional investment into a build isn’t required to get the maximum effective output. We don’t want to compromise on having melee feel powerful, but believe that getting to that maximum output should be the result of meaningful buildcrafting and upgrade progression. Our goal for this change and the knife lunge changes…are that the knife remains a powerful backup tool, but requires more thoughtful play – both in and out of run – to be most effective.”marathon’s bubble shields will be harder to findscreenshot: bungieAnother big change is coming to Marathon‘s already scarce bubble shields, as they’ve been bumped up to a Superior loot item, making them even more hard to come by when looting Marathon‘s different zones. Additionally, the shield is being hit with a dramatic 33% drop to the amount of damage it can take before it breaks. The good news is that it no longer takes extra damage from Volt weapons and has received a buff to its resistance against UESC fire. Making the shield more effective against UESC enemies may make players less likely to deploy them when in firefights with other Runners, which might lead to players having to shoot down other Runners’ bubble shields less often.One of Marathon‘s faction contracts is seeing a small change as part of this new update as well. Traxus’ Return on Investment 4/5 contract has been altered so that Runners will be able to complete each of its two objectives on different runs, making Traxus Runners’ lives just a little bit easier. screenshot: bungieAs expected, Update 1.0.5.3 also includes a handful of bug fixes. A visual bug having to do with players’ Vaults appearing completely empty will no longer send players into shock, and issues with the Armory have been ironed out, too. Lastly, a very dangerous bug that has seen Cryo Archive exfil countdowns resetting after players step out of the extraction circle has been amended, making getting out of Marathon‘s most dangerous zone more reliable. Marathon has already laid out the headline changes coming as part of its next update on April 14. It’s then that Runners who use the Recon shell will be treated to some very powerful Echo Pulse and Tracker Drone buffs.Marathon update 1.0.5.3CombatKnifeReduced the maximum lunge distance by ~10% and trimmed down the targeting angle by ~20%.Bubble ShieldIncreased rarity from Deluxe (blue) to Superior (purple)Reduced bubble HP by 33%Removed vulnerability to Volt Weapon damageIncreased resistance to UESC damage by 17%RunnersStatsMelee DamageReduced bonus damage provided by the Melee Damage stat from a maximum of 100% to a maximum of 50% against enemy Runners. Damage against non-Runner targets is unchanged.DEVELOPER NOTE: Melee in Marathon is intended to be a high-risk but potent method to contest close-quarters weapons like shotguns and submachine guns. However, the breakpoints for quick melee kills show up too early in the Melee Damage stat progression, which means additional investment into a build isn’t required to get the maximum effective output. We don’t want to compromise on having melee feel powerful, but believe that getting to that maximum output should be the result of meaningful buildcrafting and upgrade progression. Our goal for this change and the knife lunge changes above are that the knife remains a powerful backup tool, but requires more thoughtful play – both in and out of run – to be most effective.ThiefFixed additional Grapple-related slide cancel movement exploits.Vault and ArmoryFixed an issue causing the Vault and Armory to sometimes appear to be empty.Fixed an issue causing the Armory item refreshes and free daily items to not appear consistently.ContractsTraxusRemoved “in a single run” condition from Traxus Return On Investment 4/5.ZonesCryo ArchiveFixed an issue that would cause an exfil countdown to reset if the 1st crew member to enter left the circle, even if the other crew members were in the circle.Marathon is available now on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC.The post New Marathon Update Nerfs Knives & Bubble Shields, and Makes Other Changes appeared first on VICE.