What is the Cryo Archive zone in Marathon?

What is the Cryo Archive zone in Marathon? — Polygon
Source: Polygon

The Cryo Archive is the fourth zone in Marathon but won’t be available at launch. Players must first unlock a path to orbit, making the Archive a collective objective for the entire Marathon community.

The zone sits on the first floor of the UESC Marathon ship, hovering in orbit above Tau Ceti IV. Bungie calls it the first "endgame" zone, featuring "security puzzles, frozen vaults, and an entity even the UESC fears." Since squads will be competing there simultaneously, it seems unlikely to be doable for solo players unless they get very lucky.

The community must collectively open the way into orbit; all we know now is that we’ll "soon discover a way aboard the derelict UESC Marathon ship" as surface exploration begins. Bungie sounds fairly confident it won’t take too long, and the launch trailer gives cinematic glimpses of the Cryo Archive that hint at its atmosphere even if they don’t show gameplay.

cryo archive, marathon, bungie, uesc marathon, tau ceti, endgame zone, security puzzles, frozen vaults, derelict ship, community objective