Marathon Server Slam, Bungie’s open preview weekend for Marathon, is now live and runs until March 2 at 12 PM CT. The Server Slam is available to play for free on Steam, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S with cross-play and cross-save enabled. You do not need to have pre-ordered the game to play this weekend.

This is not a demo in the traditional sense. Bungie is upfront that the Server Slam is a technical stress test designed to hammer their global infrastructure ahead of Marathon‘s full launch on March 5. Expect login queues, disconnects, error codes, and potential short-notice maintenance windows throughout the weekend. Again, the point is to stress the servers, but in doing so everyone on the fence (myself included) will get a chance to try the game without having to buy it.

During the Marathon Server Slam, players will have access to two zones on Tau Ceti IV — Perimeter and Dire Marsh — along with early contracts for five factions: CyberAcme, NuCaloric, Traxus, MIDA, and Arachne. Five of the six Runner shells available at launch are playable, plus Rook, a scavenger-focused experience. You can squad up with a crew, run solo, or use proximity chat to forge and immediately betray alliances with strangers.

Progression does not carry over to launch, but rewards do. Complete the introductory mission and you unlock an exclusive Beta.exe emblem and player background. Hit Runner Level 10 and Level 30, and you bank increasingly stocked Arrival Caches full of weapons, implants, and gear that will be delivered to your account when the game launches March 5.

Twitch Drops are also available throughout the weekend. Link your Bungie and Twitch accounts and watch any Marathon stream in the Marathon category to earn cosmetics including a weapon skin after four hours watched.

Marathon launches March 5th for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.

Will you be trying out Marathon? Drop a comment below to let us know.