There needs to be a healthy variety of Marathon weapons, because it’s an extraction shooter, so players have plenty of choices for any combat situation. In Marathon, there are 28 in total, across eight different categories, and all of them are fairly unique and serve a different purpose.
Below, we’ve got the full list of weapons in Marathon, along with our top five picks for the best weapons in the game. That ranking takes into account the power of the weapon and how versatile it is, but also how easy it is to get your hands on. Some weapons are incredibly rare, so while they might be strong, it’s tough to recommend them if finding one means most players likely won’t even see it. All weapons can be modified and upgraded with various mods and attachments too, so once you’ve found your favorites for the respective Marathon classes, kit them out however you like.
All Marathon weapons
Here are all 28 Marathon weapons listed:
- Overrun AR (assault rifle)
- V75 Scar (assault rifle)
- Impact H-AR (assault rifle)
- M77 Assault Rifle (assault rifle)
- Retaliator LMG (machine gun)
- Demolition HMG (machine gun)
- Conquest LMG (machine gun)
- Hardline PR (precision rifle)
- Repeater HPR (precision rifle)
- V66 Lookout (precision rifle)
- BR33 Volley Rifle (precision rifle)
- Twin Tap HBR (precision rifle)
- Stryder MiT (precision rifle)
- V11 Punch (pistol)
- CE Tactical Sidearm (pistol)
- Magnum MC (pistol)
- V00 Zeus RG (railgun)
- Ares RG (railgun)
- Misriah 2442 (shotgun)
- V85 Circuit Breaker (shotgun)
- WSTR Combat Shotgun (shotgun)
- Outland (sniper rifle)
- V99 Channel Rifle (sniper rifle)
- Longshot (sniper rifle)
- Copperhead RF (submachine gun)
- Bully SMG (submachine gun)
- V22 Volt Thrower (submachine gun)
- BRRT SMG (submachine gun)
Below, we list the five best Marathon guns in no particular order.
Bully SMG
The Bully SMG, despite being so easily accessible and granted to you from the MIDA sponsored kit, is versatile, powerful, and highly reliable. It uses heavy ammo, so it only stacks 60 bullets at a time as opposed to the 80 offered by light ammo, but it tears through both runners and UESC enemies alike. It’s also got manageable recoil, which means it shreds at range too, and if you’re bringing in another weapon alongside it, you should opt for either a sniper rifle, to deal with those enemies halfway across the map, or a shotgun, for the most devastating damage up close.
M77 assault rifle
While the Overrun assault rifle is by far the most common, and likely the one you’ll end up using the most in sponsored kits, its magazine size is far too small for its fast fire rate and low damage. It’s one of the worst guns in the game, in fact, which means the M77 — the other assault rifle that isn’t too tricky to get ahold of — is a much better shout. It has more manageable recoil, each shot deals more damage, and it’s much better at range. As long as you get an optic mod on it, you’re good to go.
Longshot sniper rifle
Sniping in Marathon is an absolute delight. Sitting back, clicking on heads of enemy runners and UESC alike, it’s a dream, especially since Bungie know how to design a satisfying sniper rifle. The Longshot is the best of the bunch, and also the one you’ll be able to get your hands on the easiest, as it’s not too uncommon to find as loot and it comes as a reward from some priority contracts. We’re not encouraging scummy gameplay, so don’t camp exfil sites for too long, but if you stumble upon someone trying to get the heck outta there… the Longshot is ironically your best shot at picking them off from afar.
Retaliator LMG
All three machine guns in Marathon are strong, because the ability to output so many bullets so quickly is a godsend. The Retaliator is the best I’ve used though, because the longer you’re firing for, the faster you fire, and if you need to break through the shields of a UESC Commander or a Destroyer, it does so with ease. Reloading takes a little while, as you’d expect, but as long as you can back into a corner and take cover for a few moments, you’ll be raring to go again before too long. Mods like the Mega Belt are also a huge boon to increase that magazine size.
Hardline precision rifle
Finally, we have the Hardline PR, which is another great accompaniment alongside a short-range weapon. You need to ensure you have a decent optic mod on it so that it can handle mid and long-range encounters, but thanks to its rate of fire and damage, most enemies will go down in just a few hits, aside from the tougher bosses. Although, as a solo player, I was able to single-handedly take down a UESC Infiltrator Agent with just a Hardline PR and a dream the other day, which gave me some phenomenal loot. Highly recommend.
There aren’t really any bad weapons in Marathon, especially as you do find some of the rarer guns, but the five above are ones you should be using for pretty much every run. If you’re looking for more help with Bungie’s extraction shooter, check out our top Marathon tips.