Bungie wrapped up the recent Marathon gameplay reveal with a delightful surprise: a stunning eight-minute animated short that delves into the game’s lore, particularly the harsh lives of runners striving to earn their fortune on Tau Ceti IV, often facing tragic fates.

I got a sneak peek of the short at Bungie’s Seattle office during a playtest a week ago, and it’s undoubtedly the most impressive animation I’ve seen from a game in a long time. (Watch it below.)

Marathon Reveal Cinematic Short Watch On YouTube

The credit for this remarkable animation goes to Alberto Mielgo, who won the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film with The Windshield Wiper in 2021. His impressive tally includes five Emmys for his work on Netflix’s Love, Death, and Robots.

The short showcases a narrative centered around runners who frequently experience death. They transfer their consciousness to cybernetic bodies while scavenging in the ruins of Tau Ceti IV. Life expectancy is depicted as alarmingly brief, highlighted by the violent fates that await them.

Upon each death, their consciousness returns to their original host body, which then confronts them with emotionally significant objects from their past, trying to anchor their identity back to their true selves. This process resembles the baseline calibration scenes from Blade Runner 2049, although it draws inspiration from the lesser-known sci-fi thriller Possessor directed by Brandon Cronenberg.

In Possessor, Andrea Riseborough plays an assassin who takes control of a victim’s mind to execute her target and return to her original body. The film explores the risks of losing one’s identity after extensive time in a borrowed body, a theme that resonates in the Marathon short as well.

Possessor Possessor is set in a different era, but both universes share similar existential dilemmas.