Technologies

How to Join Bungie’s Marathon Alpha Test Ahead of Its September Launch

Discover the fortune and secrets of Tau Ceti IV in new gameplay footage.

Marathon, the long-dormant sci-fi shooter from Bungie, makes its return in September. For players who want to try out the new game before it comes out, there will be a closed alpha test starting later this month.

A trilogy of games released on the Mac back in the ’90s, Marathon put Bungie on the map before it released Halo on the original Xbox. This latest iteration of Marathon is a complete overhaul of the original formula, going from an old-school 3D first-person shooter like Doom to a team-based extraction shooter. Players take the role of runners who drop onto the planet of Tau Ceti IV to search for loot, fortune and secrets.

//RUN 🏃
Infilling on September 23, 2025.#MarathonReveal pic.twitter.com/2SXpzPxkA0

— Marathon (@MarathonTheGame) April 12, 2025

Here’s what you need to know about Marathon.

When does Marathon come out?

Marathon will be released on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series consoles on Sept. 23.

How much will Marathon cost?

Bungie hasn’t yet provided a price as of the game’s reveal on Saturday. The developer did say on its Marathon X account that the game will not be a «full-priced title,» which should refer to the standard $70 price tag on new games. There is speculation that Marathon could be priced from $40 to $50, although at that price, there will likely be a wealth of microtransactions.

When does the Marathon closed alpha test start?

The closed alpha test begins on April 23 and runs through May 4.

How can I join the Marathon closed alpha test?

Those interested in joining the closed alpha test can sign up at the Marathon Discord channel. Once you’re in the channel, follow these steps:

Go to the «alpha_access» channel (a link to that channel can be found in the «marathon-news» channel)
Once in «alpha_access,» type in «/alpha»
You’ll receive a private message with instructions and a unique link to sign up for the test
If you’re picked, you will receive an email from marathonthegame@info.bungie.net sometime before the alpha test starts

What is this new Marathon?

Marathon has players explore the lost human colony on Tau Ceti IV, either as a team or solo. They’ll have to explore zones occupied by rival players, computer-controlled forces and other threats on the planet. Players choose from different runner classes, such as the stealth Void, which can use active camo.

The game is an extraction shooter, the latest craze in gaming genres. Extraction shooters differ from looter shooters such as Borderlands and The Division, because you need to escape the area (hence extraction) in order to keep all the loot you’ve gathered. Die and all those goodies are up for grabs for other players. The more loot you return with, the better the chances of survival next time.

How does the new Marathon game connect to the older games?

In the original Marathon games, Tau Ceti IV was the home to a human colony of 30,000 people. It was ultimately destroyed by an alien race called the Pfhor that was working with an AI called Durandal.

At the end of the gameplay reveal on Saturday, Bungie released a cinematic video providing some insight about the Runners exploring Tau Ceti IV. There are some questions about what really happened to the colony, and the details about this will ultimately be revealed as players explore the world.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for April 22, #211

Hints and answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 211, for April 22.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Connections: Sports Edition is the most up-and-down puzzle for me of all the New York Times online games. Sometimes I ace it (not that often), and other times, it stumps me. The usually tough purple category was OK for me today, but I had to let the blue category fill in itself, because it contained a word I’d never even seen before (Babolat). Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Not footgear.

Green group hint: City of Brotherly Love.

Blue group hint: Think Venus and Serena Williams.

Purple group hint: Spacey team names.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Headgear.

Green group: Philadelphia teams.

Blue group: Tennis racket brands.

Purple group: Sports meets outer space.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is headgear. The four answers are hat, helmet, mask and visor.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is Philadelphia teams. The four answers are 76ers, Flyers, Phillies and Union.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is tennis racket brand. The four answers are Babolat, Head, Prince and Wilson.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is sports meets outer space. The four answers are Astros, Galaxy, Stars and Sun.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Tuesday, April 22

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for April 22.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

My husband hasn’t played the NYT Mini Crossword that much, as I discovered when I heard him yell out, «Two of these clues are the same!» Yes, and it’s not a typo — that’s how tricky the puzzle creators are. Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get at those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Work like a ___
Answer: DOG

4A clue: Work like a ___
Answer: CHARM

6A clue: Voice type that falls between soprano and alto, informally
Answer: MEZZO

7A clue: Black-and-white snacks
Answer: OREOS

8A clue: Move one’s head in agreement
Answer: NOD

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Totally out of it
Answer: DAZED

2D clue: Rice-shaped pasta
Answer: ORZO

3D clue: Engineered crops, for short
Answer: GMOS

4D clue: «You can’t be serious!»
Answer: CMON

5D clue: Villain’s counterpart
Answer: HERO

How to play more Mini Crosswords

The New York Times Games section offers a large number of online games, but only some of them are free for all to play. You can play the current day’s Mini Crossword for free, but you’ll need a subscription to the Times Games section to play older puzzles from the archives.

Technologies

Catch a Rare Planetary ‘Smiley Face’ in the Stars This Week: Here’s How

Look to the eastern sky late Thursday, and a clear horizon will show you this unusual, grinning planet alignment.

A rare celestial event on April 24-25 will give skygazers a creative way to see a smiley face in the early morning sky. Though it’s not exactly an emoji, this interesting grouping will show a crescent moon plus two rising planets, Venus and Saturn, close to the horizon. Together they’ll form a quirky sideways «smile» for watchful viewers, creating plenty of potential for amateur photographers with the right angles.

«Find Venus, Saturn, and the crescent moon gathered low in the east as dawn warms the morning sky. Mercury is also visible below them for those with a clear view to the horizon,» NASA said in this month’s skywatching tips.

This isn’t quite a lunar occultation, where the moon fully obscures the planets, but the event is very close to one. If you want the best chance of seeing this interesting convergence, you should head out before twilight.

When CNET reached out to Amateur Astronomer’s Association for advice, they let us know, «Thank you for reaching out! Stargazers all across the US will be able to see this conjunction in the early morning hours. They should look towards the eastern sky just before sunrise, local time. … All stargazers need is an open view of that eastern horizon and clear skies» The club also recommended using the Stellarium Web site as a tool to calculate the exact best time to view for your location.

When you’re ready, start with a few simple steps:

Go out while it’s still fully dark, well before dawn in your location.
Ensure you have a clear view of the eastern horizon (where the sun rises). Clouds or morning fog may obscure the event.
Find a higher spot with a clear view of the horizon. Nearby hills or mountains could hide the event, so the clearer, the better.
Find the moon’s crescent at the bottom of the horizon.
Look to the upper right of the crescent and watch for two bright lights to shine. You may think they’re stars, but they’re planets. Venus should be significantly brighter than Saturn, giving the smile a fun, lopsided look.
If you’re taking photos, wait until the brightening twilight has started to obscure nearby stars while the planets still remain easily visible.

The smiley face is part of Venus’ continual shift from an evening spectacle to a morning event throughout April. Mercury will also be making an appearance if you have a horizon view that includes especially low stars.