Halo and Destiny creator Bungie's first big game is free on Steam

Before it created Halo and before it created Destiny, veteran game development studio Bungie released the classic first-person shooter Marathon for the Apple Macintosh in 1994. Hailed as the Mac's answer to Doom, Marathon spawned a sequel several years later, leading to the studio's creation of the iconic Halo: Combat Evolved.

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Bungie's Marathon remastered for PC, image credit: Steam/Aleph One Developers

With Bungie now a first-party PlayStation studio owned by Sony, the team is developing a new entry in the series called Marathon. It takes place in the same futuristic sci-fi universe as the original but is shifting the gameplay and style to fit the mold of a PvP extraction shooter - ala Escape From Tarkov.

We've got some great news if you want to get a taste of where it all began. The community-driven team at Aleph One Developers has released a remastered version of the 1994 original - playable on modern PC gaming hardware and available for free on Steam.

Powered by the open-source Aleph One engine, this remaster uses the original game data with new 3D filtering, positional audio, and support for 60+ FPS gameplay. There's also the option to play in widescreen, with a revamped HUD to support modern displays. Of course, you can also play using the now classic HUD and look of the original game.

Check out the trailer below for a closer look at the Marathon remaster.

"Fresh from your triumph on the colony ship Marathon, you are seized by the rogue AI Durandal to do his bidding in a distant part of the galaxy," the game's description reads. "Within the ruins of an ancient civilization, you must seek the remnants of a lost clan and uncover their long-buried secrets. Battle opponents ancient and terrible, with sophisticated weapons and devious strategies, all the while struggling to escape the alien nightmare..."

The team also plans to release the sequel Marathon 2 and the co-op offshoot Marathon Infinity - you can wishlist both on Steam.

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