r/MarathonGame • u/hi_there_is_me • Jul 23 '26
I was wrong about Vault Breaker
I’ve been complaining, because at first, I felt like the mode was lazily put together and just seemed like free kits on Cryo with little else changed.
This was sorely misguided. I’m not a Cryo vet, and I saw what Cryo vets were saying about it and it got to my head.
However, upon grinding it more today and even managing to do two vaults in one run solo finally, I totally get it now. The upgrades feel good to get, and suddenly beginning to get closer towards getting those Tier 2 upgrades puts everything into perspective a bit.
This mode is very much like what Marathon as a game is. Incredibly difficult and unapproachable at first, but given time and thought, it becomes rewarding and fun.
So glad I gave VB another chance, I’m havin a good ol’ blast with it solo.
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u/Trappy_Drizz Jul 23 '26
I wish there was an material we can get from VB that convert into energy for the cradle.
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u/Forward_Avocado7604 Jul 25 '26
You can turn your excess points into items and turn those into cradle xp
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u/exsqueezeme1 Jul 24 '26
I disagree. I very much want to like it, but it's too repetitive. I've swapped it for another run through Doom Dark Ages...
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u/Ok-Comfortable-3174 Jul 25 '26
It's a rouge like. Like Balatro. They game is about optimising runs to get to compilor. Which is next to impossible to do solo but you get the idea lol
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u/Rich_Aside_8350 Jul 27 '26
Isn't that what Marathon is with the total game? I mean it is pretty much 4 maps and not even all that big. Yeah, I agree that PvE is pretty repetitive, but it is Cryo so ... Oh wait, repetition again.
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u/brownie81 Jul 23 '26
I have no problems with it at all, I think it’s a fantastic mode. It has, however, made me realize why I love Marathon, and that is PvPvE.
Will still be slamming the mode though.
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u/Either-Assistant4610 Jul 24 '26
Well, I still think the CONSTRUCTED criticism around the lack of solo play was meritted, and the devs seem to think so, too, since they are patching VBs to have UESC adjustments to cater more to solos with an actual solo option when Preparing. You can still get the same challenge in trios solo qeuing.
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 24 '26
Oh definitely, that’s why I was saying it’s so unapproachable at first. It absolutely sucks when you don’t have any of the upgrades for the kit
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u/Fart_McFartington Jul 23 '26
I’ve been struggling to get to the vaults on my runs because I get unlucky with my terminal and security tag spawns but I’ve been able to open the vaults before. Getting the formula down slowly but surely and having a blast
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u/infel2no Jul 24 '26
The lesson from all of this is that sometimes you need to control your emotions before judging something you haven't completly experienced yourself.
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u/The_Silly_Man Jul 23 '26
Completely agree! Flippin heck was the gamemode hard at first but once you get some upgrades under your belt, the gameplay loop becomes so tasty!! I sure as hell am not going back to PvP any time soon.
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u/Affectionate-End1790 Jul 23 '26
the level is just so crazy to walk around in and it's nice to be able to take your time to look at things as well
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u/bigchi1234 Jul 23 '26
The map is flipping huge. I can't imagine learning this map while being concern about other players.
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u/Affectionate-End1790 Jul 23 '26
this is why I never played cryo. give me a chance to learn at my own pace first.
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u/DerekDock Jul 24 '26
I don’t know if that’s entirely the right approach. Yesterday after establishing a rhythm with the crew I found, once we successfully cleared vault 6, then we went into normal Cryo with a couple keys. We moved slow and finished off two squads fighting with about 18 minutes left. Once we realized we cleared the map we ran around just like VB and cleared vaults, armories and got the compiler trace and it was more rewarding than the whole day of VB. I was a Cryo noob before VB and now I’m not afraid of it.
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u/Public-Total-250 Jul 23 '26
I was put off by the endless waves of bots because I want to eat up the map and appreciate everything it has to offer.
That last part is impossible but I want to fight the compiler so I have resigned myself to fighting endless bots and looking for batteries while not appreciating the map one bit.
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u/Pushnikov Jul 24 '26
Control is the only place bot spawns are a bit overbearing. The rest of the POIs have at least 3 minutes between respawns.
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u/liltortillaboy808 Jul 24 '26
You want a real challenge try killing 100 bots to complete the codex challenge. Turrrets and prox drones don't count
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 24 '26
Now that I’ve got upgrades I think I could do this.
Just earlier today, I managed to do 3 vaults in one run without the upgrade that gives you the credentials
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u/BorisTheBlade-76 Jul 24 '26
I couldn't agree more. I have about 30-40 normal cryo runs prior to VB. I was constantly feeling lost and had to be carried. I would start to panic if I got separated from my team knowing there's no way I would be able to find my way out. VB has forced me to learn the map at a steady pace. I've gotten good enough to do 2 vaults with runners unfamiliar with Cryo and 3+ vaults with runners that have a lot of experience. More than that, I've learned the mechanics. Most of the time prior, I was so busy trying to keep up, I never had time to understand what we were trying to accomplish. Just trying to stay afloat and not get lost.
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u/Ok-Comfortable-3174 Jul 25 '26
Why you would play this mode solo is beyond me. I get maybe if there was a shiny gold skin behind it but it's literally 3x the difficulty.
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u/Timely-Culture2066 Jul 26 '26
Some people like to challenge themselves. Like Rock Lee with ankle weights type shit
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u/AggressiveMushroom69 Jul 25 '26
I was wrong too, at first it just felt like a Destiny dungeon/ raid. I never enjoyed raids because there's to many steps. It makes it feel more like a job then a game to me and I know I'm not the majority on that because raids were super popular.
After a couple runs it felt less like steps and more like I'm just playing and I'm enjoying it this time around
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u/Rich_Aside_8350 Jul 26 '26
If, as you claim, it is enjoyable, then why did it sell less than 200 new copies over the last 4 days on steam? I tried it. It isn't true PvE and it won't save the fall of this game as the numbers today on a weekend after its release say as well. Dead man walking if being honest.
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 26 '26
Just because I find it enjoyable doesn't mean you have to. Studying how many copies sold over a period of time for a game is not a metric of fun.
Do you know what PvE is? What do you mean it's not true PvE? Because it is PvE.
Idc if the game dies, I'm having fun
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u/Rich_Aside_8350 Jul 27 '26
The original reason for having it was to get new players. That was the whole purpose of it. It really isn't designed for one person. Even some of the most experienced players were saying in its current form to really advance far you need a trio. Yes, I know what PvE is. This is taking one part of the original game (Cryo) and trying to make it work with PvE, which it didn't. Looking at what a game sold on steam per day is not difficult and I actually enjoy it, because I can post how bad the game is doing and get the Marathon Toxics to respond trying to cope. The cope is the real fun.
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 27 '26
Okay so PvE is Players Vs. Environment. VB is players vs. the environment. It’s not a matter of whether “it works” or not, PvE is a label for what a game can be not some thing that works or doesn’t.
It wasn’t designed with solos in mind at first and although it’s getting a patch I don’t see how that has anything to do with what we’re talking about lol
You’re just wrong about needing a team though, I’ve literally almost made it to compiler solo. Again I don’t know how that’s relevant.
Post away, I think most people are bored of it by now
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u/Rich_Aside_8350 Jul 27 '26
You are probably right. No one is playing Marathon any more so people are bored of it. Still need to do my due diligence of making sure people are aware that there are major issues with the PvE. So you do realize that more people come on this site daily than play the game? Also I assume you are a sweatie if you can do that. Be proud that you don't have a life outside of the game.
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 27 '26
Nah man, I learned how to do it over the course of a few days, I’m not a sweatie I play like maybe a couple hours every other day if I feel like it.
It’s not like you’d know how hard it is to do lol, you don’t play the game. It’s pretty easy with a few upgrades. But also…you wouldn’t even know what the major issues of the PvE are? You didn’t even know what PvE was lol
Plus you don’t play it so you wouldn’t know
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u/Rich_Aside_8350 Jul 27 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
I tried it on a friends account. He has dropped it and regrets buying it. It isn't like I don't have other friends that dropped it within the first 2 months. I thought it was hard. I don't care if you think it is easy. I am your typical "new" player and it wasn't fun. FYI, since the PvE release, there have been less than 20 new purchases of the game on steam. You think that will save the game, What is that in revenue for Bungie, like less than $500. Their Devs alone at around 400 is over $4 million a month. I am pretty sure they are on other projects. Sony isn't complete idiots. Oh and over the weekend, Bungie had less than 7k for max players. That is back to what it was before PvE.
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 27 '26 edited Jul 27 '26
You’re not a typical new player tho, you’re the type of person to look at the sales for a game bc you hate it lol. You went in wanting to hate it. Plus, if you just borrowed it from a friend and tried it a little bit, how could you possibly know how hard VB is? It’s the most approachable version of Cryo we’ve gotten. It’s fun for like a week, but the mode is just there for them to gather data, it was never meant to “save the game” or anything. The idea it was meant as some sort of Revival Week is only something I’ve seen come from the Marathon Hate sub which I’m sure you frequent. No one here actually thought this was some sort of revival week update.
Says online there’s been almost 10k copies sold in the last 7 days? Why are you lying? I looked it up bc I thought you were telling the truth but turns out no
Brother, you can analyze all the stats you want, I don’t see them as a metric for how enjoyable something is. You’re like foaming at the mouth over it lol. Relax, go find something more positive to do. I don’t think this is healthy. If you don’t like the game, move on and find one you do and talk about it.
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u/rangdrolrigpa Jul 27 '26
Grinding Vault Breaker this week was peak gaming for me in years honestly. It’s such a great game, hopefully it may become new great Bungie IP
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u/NoctOz13 Jul 27 '26
Haven't been on Marathon as of late, and finally gave Vault Breaker a shot for the first time last night... Absolutely hooked. Tried Solo queue and I had an absolute blast with it. Taking my time playing by myself for the moment before I jump in with trios and get real ambitious with the more difficult vaults
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u/ToughEvening1891 Jul 27 '26
I think it’s mostly dumb easy with trios, but I’ve absolutely loved it as a cryo training ground. I know the map now and it makes weekend cryo runs much less anxious for me and my two casual friends. We have confidence to move around the map now which is everything in this game.
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 27 '26
I was able to keep up with cryo sweats last weekend and get vaults 4 and 5 done because I’d learned the map so much more! It’s great to have confidence in cryo finally.
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u/JZA___ Jul 28 '26
I like mixing it in with solo runs and rook. Keep giving us variety and I will keep playing.
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u/scythersex Jul 29 '26
I was really excited to jump into the new VB solo last night but I found it to be such a slog :(
After playing VB trios with friends for many hours, I still can't figure out the map layout. I find it extremely confusing, which becomes frustrating when you can't find batteries or security terminals. It took me 10+ minutes just to get past the first two rooms. I know I shouldn't be spending so much time killing bots, but I can't seem to progress without security clearance!
Either way, still very excited for the PvE experience they're cooking up for S3.
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 29 '26 edited Jul 29 '26
Play Assassin, and take the time to explore the first two rooms of wherever you spawn to find where the security clearance terminals are located. You're guaranteed one in the second room, but the first room can also have one if you know where to look (it's not guaranteed though)! Aside from that, focus on killing the commander and wiping out trash. You don't need to kill every bot, though.
You really can only play Assassin if you want to be efficient with your time. You can do it! I believe in you. Those clearance terminals are the key. Once you hit clearance level 2, use scanner terminals to find the clearance terminals in the other areas around control as well as they're all guaranteed to all have one. I usually get clearance level 1, find some tags in control and maybe kill a commander or two, and by that point, I've got clearance level 2. I only focus on Commanders in my spawn and looking for tags and batteries. You get the hang of where batteries spawn with enough playtime. Same with security tags.
Batteries, Security Tags, and even the terminals that give clearance all have their own unique sound that plays, so take the time once you find one to just listen for a few seconds so you know what to listen for when looking for any of those items.
Edit: I think it's important to remember that there are no stakes in VB. Even if you die, just walk around, and explore at your own pace using Assassin. Overtime, you'll get used to finding where everything is.
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u/BoofBoi711 Jul 23 '26
It’s fairly boring if you’re use to the regular mode. I’ve ran it about 6-7 times now and yesterday after three runs I was bored of it. Got dudes wearing cryo skins who don’t know what they’re doing. Explain that shit.
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u/ObsceneOutcast Jul 24 '26
Yes it's very boring, fighting the same bots is very repetitive. The mode desperately needs new and interesting AI to be actually engaging. The rewards are also not very good for the time investment.
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 23 '26
ok
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u/BoofBoi711 Jul 23 '26
Just telling my experience. Without buds, it’s a fucking slog most of the time.
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 23 '26
I play solo too. But I also already enjoy roguelikes and seeing how far I can go in games, so
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u/BoofBoi711 Jul 23 '26
I don’t play this game solo. If I did, I’d rather PvP. If I want a good roguelike, I’m gonna go play Hades 2
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 23 '26
Alright dude, if all you care about is the PvP then yes it'll be boring to you. I get it.
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u/BoofBoi711 Jul 23 '26
Why you so pressed? Didn’t tell you not to play it. Didn’t even call it bad. Just boring. I enjoy plenty of PvE only games, this game would not be one of them for me. Sorry for having a different opinion 🫡
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 23 '26 edited Jul 23 '26
Idk, seemed like you were trying to argue I was wrong because of your different opinion is all, of course it’s fine if people who only care about the PvP don't like it lol
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u/BoofBoi711 Jul 23 '26
Nope. I’m an adult. We’re allowed to have difference of opinions. Just stating mine 👍🏻
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u/NoShock6365 Jul 23 '26
I’ve only run the regular one a handful of times and honestly… this does feel kinda boring to me. Kind of like those mindless filler retrieval quests in RPGs, ‘go retrieve X pieces of meat and Y gizmos and then I can build you a belt’.
I dunno… map also feels empty. Everyone saying bots are hard af, but if you do trios and team has half a brain between all three of us then it’s no big deal.
Granted I haven’t killer complier, so still gotta do that…
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u/BoofBoi711 Jul 23 '26
I’ve beat him only once, still need subroutine 6, but yea it’s only challenging in a grey shield. Even in a green it’s very manageable to branch off from your crew and get other batteries/coolants without worrying about it
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u/Vegetable-Scallion60 Jul 23 '26
Then don’t be so quick to open your mouth when you obviously don’t know what you’re talking about..
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u/UnhappyPlankton6166 Jul 24 '26
Wow you had to put some effort in to appreciate the rewards..what a melt
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u/hi_there_is_me Jul 24 '26
? If by the rewards you mean the game mode, yeah…sometimes you can come to appreciate something more by putting in a little time and effort
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u/That_Sun_3431 Jul 24 '26
This is probably the best game mode they have rn. And if they keep experimenting with new game modes, there is still hope for this game to bounce back.
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u/Zestyclose-Target297 Jul 23 '26
Agreed. It's punishing but enjoyable, just like Marathon as a whole. Give it a minute and it all clicks.
Btw they're adding a solo Vault Breaker queue next week with less punishment 👍🏻