Marathon's Server Slam kicked off on Thursday, February 26, and players trying to jump into Bungie's PvPvE extraction shooter are being met with lengthy login queues. If you've been staring at a queue screen wondering whether something is broken on your end, it isn't. The wait times are a direct consequence of the Server Slam's purpose — pushing the game's infrastructure to its limits before the full launch on March 5.
Quick answer: Long login queues in Marathon cannot be fixed on your end. They are caused by massive simultaneous player demand during the Server Slam stress test. Stay in the queue and wait, or try again during off-peak hours.
Why Marathon login queues exist during the Server Slam
The Server Slam is not a traditional open beta. It is a deliberate technical stress test where Bungie opens the game worldwide, free for everyone, to see how the servers handle extreme player loads. Bungie explicitly warned ahead of the event that players should expect login queues — especially during peak hours — along with potential server disconnects, error codes, and possible unscheduled maintenance windows.
In Bungie's own words, the Server Slam involves "turning everything on worldwide, inviting as many of you in as we can, and then watching the systems closely." The servers are intentionally being pushed past comfortable capacity. That means the queue you're seeing is the system working as intended, throttling logins to prevent outright crashes.
This isn't Bungie's first rodeo with login queues, either. Destiny 2 players have dealt with similar queue systems for years during expansion launches and major updates. During Marathon's 2025 closed alpha test, players encountered a throttling message that read "due to increased traffic, login services to Marathon are currently being throttled," asking them to remain on the screen until services stabilized. The Server Slam is producing the same kind of bottleneck, just at a much larger scale.
Peak hours with the worst queue times
Queue lengths fluctuate throughout the day depending on how many players are trying to connect simultaneously. The heaviest congestion hits during evening hours in Europe and midday in North America. Specifically, expect the longest waits around 6–9 PM CET and 12–1 PM ET. That said, queues can appear at any time, given the global nature of the test.
What you can (and can't) do while waiting
There is no workaround, trick, or settings change that will bypass the queue. The bottleneck is entirely server-side. But there are a few things worth keeping in mind to avoid making the wait worse.
Do not leave the queue. If you close the game or back out, your position resets entirely. You'll go straight to the back of the line and wait even longer than if you'd stayed put.
You don't need to babysit the screen. Once your spot comes up, the game will log you in automatically without any additional input. Feel free to do something else while the queue processes — just leave the game running.
Try off-peak hours if the wait is unbearable. Closing the game and returning a couple of hours later, particularly outside the European evening or North American midday windows, will likely result in a much shorter queue. It's not ideal, but it beats sitting in a 45-minute line only to potentially hit a disconnect.
If you do get disconnected or hit an error code after waiting through the queue, you'll unfortunately need to rejoin from the beginning. Bungie warned that error codes and server disconnects are expected during the stress test.
Server Slam schedule and end time
The Marathon Server Slam runs from Thursday, February 26, at 12 PM CT through Monday, March 2, at 12 PM CT (10 AM PT / 1 PM ET / 7 PM CET). Once the event ends, the game will go offline until the full launch on March 5. Cross-play and cross-save are both fully supported during the Server Slam, so you can play on any platform and carry your progress forward.
You cannot manually switch servers or regions. Marathon uses dedicated regional servers, but deployment is handled automatically. There's no option to hop to a less congested region.
Tracking server status
For real-time updates on Marathon's server health, outages, or emergency maintenance during the Server Slam, follow @BNGServerStatus on X (formerly Twitter). The Marathon development team also posts updates through @MarathonDevTeam on the same platform.
Login queues during a stress test are frustrating but expected — and in this case, they're literally the point. Bungie is gathering data from the Server Slam to ensure the March 5 launch goes more smoothly. The best strategy right now is patience: stay in the queue, avoid restarting, and try off-peak windows if the wait becomes too long.