It’s been a long time since we’ve had something to cheer about in Destiny 2. In fact, the game has suffered many losses, both in-game and out, with the departure of many beloved characters and voices we’ve grown accustomed to over the years. It’s actually quite surprising that the game has gone through the number of publishers it has due to the huge amount of buzz it’s received over the years while still pushing out new quality content. That goes to show how strong the fanbase is and how much destiny means to a lot of people, both in the development team and the fanbase.
Indeed, the main issue plaguing the game is the lack of cohesion between Bungie and the fans. The problems really started after the release of Destiny 2, but we’ll cover that later in the article. Right now, this is a smart move by the team to bring back an integral character who probably shouldn’t have been killed off in the first place. It’s an important start in a long journey that the team must take in order to right the ship.
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Where Destiny Went Wrong
This conundrum began when Destiny 2 was announced only a few short years after the launch of the first game. We all know about the infamous 10-year plan, but that wasn’t even the cherry on top of the soggy sundae; it was the fact that the original game launched without much to do at all. I remember trying to get into the story just to find out everything ended abruptly with no real resolution to the plot, however small it was. To make matters worse, their few memorable characters were underutilized, and the popular leaders of the Guardians – Zavala, Ikora, and Cayde-6 – were nothing more than glorified vendors.
There was so much that the team left on the table, and the first game, while addicting thanks to the cool loot system and gameplay, was missing too much to be satisfied with what we ended up getting. This feeling of emptiness turned into a mixture of annoyance and confusion when Bungie announced a sequel right when the game was steadily improving. Gamers had invested so much time and energy into their characters, and it came across as incredibly tone-deaf when the team first revealed the sequel. The ten-year plan seemed like a farce; it may have been a gateway to getting more money from fans.
Was Destiny 2 Really Necessary?
To be honest, I can’t answer whether Destiny 2 was necessary, but in terms of worldbuilding and story, the game is in a much better place than the original overall. According to articles, it’s no secret that Destiny 2 was forced upon the team, and Bungie tried to implement what they originally planned for the first game in the sequel. In other words, they’re looking to reinvent the game to ensure it has enough longevity in the live-service industry. On the other hand, with the amount of paid DLC and microtransactions the team is pushing on the players, maybe this is something that’s always been in the plans.
It couldn’t have been a coincidence that Bungie decided to split from Activision when it did. Back then, the DLCs and “expansion” were relatively tame compared to what’s happening now. We were relegated to paying for story chapters, gear, and season passes in a more compact way, compared to now, where it seems like all the purchases many players didn’t make are still required to experience the full game. That’s fine early on when there’s not a lot of content, but after a while, it becomes a bit excessive, especially with the high prices, with single expansions costing nearly as much as a full AAA game.
It’s neat that the team is putting so much effort into new content. Still, many other competitors are releasing much cheaper content, and some don’t have a large backing compared to Activision and Sony.
I’m sorry, but when Guild Wars 2 (which isn’t nearly as popular) releases expansions for $39.99, it’s quite daunting for our wallets when the upcoming Destiny 2: The Final Shape releases for $99.99 for the “full experience.” This made some sense when they were briefly independent, but as the team is quite big and has a lot of mouths to feed, it makes no sense now with such a large company backing you.
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Bringing back Cayde-6 was a great start. He’s such an important character in every aspect of the game, and although the story is opening a new chapter after this expansion, there’s much more to do. I and many others hope his return marks the beginning of Bungie listening to fans and making good changes to the game that will benefit both the players and the team. The storytelling has taken a dive in the latest expansions, so this, along with less content for both PvE and PvP players, is causing many to duck out of the game. You can only do so many strikes and battlegrounds before the grind starts to wear on you.
