Marathon 2 logo, provided as a gamerpic with the Citadel achievement in Marathon: Durandal for Xbox Live Arcade.

A Pfhor fighter approaches the player with the stereotypical staff weapon. In some levels, the player could pick up a dropped staff. It had two firing modes; the primary shot a bolt similar to the fusion pistol, while the alt fire was a melee attack.

Many Bungie games from Marathon to Myth and Halo include so-called "ball" games, where the objective is not merely carnage but to control certain items. Usually while carrying them a player is unable to attack. In Marathon, as in Halo, these "balls" are represented graphically as skulls.

The SSM missile launcher in Marathon 2 packs quite a wallop; be sure to stay clear of targets to avoid splash damage. A similar weapon existed in the original Marathon game, but blocked considerably more of the player's field of vision, rendering it a bit less useful.

Marathon 2 was the first game in the series to feature underwater environments. Here the player is faced by a pair of flying security drones and a pair of the reptilian Flick'ta, indiginous to the swampy areas of the S'pht homeworld.

Not all BOBs are what they seem. In an attempt to confuse the player, some levels featured "simulacrums" that looked like BOBs, but were in fact a kind of proximity mine. Note the rather unnatural-looking yellow blood coming from the BOB on the far right. Marathon 2 used this feature, but it was present in the original game as well.

It should be noted that unlike other weapons, the Zeus Class Fusion Pistol will fire while underwater, but it will damage the player while doing so.

The moment where the Master Chief wielded two rifles in the E3 2003 realtime demo got a rousing cheer from the audience, but the Marathon cyborg did it first. Here, in Marathon 2:Durandal, we we see him fending off Hunters and Phfor Elite with dual shotguns, a very powerful combination.

Like the shotgun, the pistol could also be used in pairs, either firing simultaneously or alternately. The pistol in Marathon 2, in addition to getting a new model, seemed like a far more effective weapon than the original. Here the player tags one of the wheelchair-like Cyborgs in the shoulder.