An Overview of Destiny 2: Anniversary
Destiny 2 players seem to be having a raw deal as to what the new game will contain once it releases this fall. In early October, Bungie released an update that switched several gameplay elements, such as the targeting system from the center of the game to a new location. Earlier in the summer, Bungie said its plan was to rotate out old, meaningless content from Destiny 2 to create space for new and better content. This has been especially controversial because of the introduction of the Destiny Content vault, which many players see as nothing more than an attempt by Bungie to manipulate the game.
With the recent leak of several highly critical Destiny 2 secrets, however, many fans are wondering if the aforementioned gambit is just another tactic by Bungie to get players to upgrade their existing accounts. In particular, some wonder if it’s simply the developer taking advantage of desperate players who are willing to pay whatever it takes to get the “exact” items they want. So is there really a gamble involved with purchasing Destiny 2 at full price and then having it come out free with a random loot system?
There are a few major factors to consider when examining whether or not Destiny 2 is actually free-to-play. First, does the upcoming autumn update, titled “expansions” give players more new content than the current base game? The answer is no. Destiny 2’s upcoming autumn update will not introduce new levels, but instead, it will offer two new challenges, one of which sees players returning to an area from the original Destiny in order to find an enemy soldier alive during a viral attack. The second challenge will allow players to take on an elite guard that can cause high amounts of damage. These missions, if you succeed, will reward you with the Destiny 2 weapons, armor, bounties, and other perks that you see listed above.
Destiny 2 has seen a lot of criticism over the course of its lifespan, primarily due to its open beta period. Many experts criticized the lack of direction, even claiming that it could have been avoided if Bungie had spent some of its development money fixing up the problems which were being reported. Since the beta did fix most, if not all of the major complaints, much of the negative feedback has died down. In particular, players who played the game at least once during the beta found that the new light levels were far too hard to manage and weren’t balanced with the rest of the game’s activities.
Bungie has addressed the complaints with a subsequent update to Destiny 2. Along with addressing the difficulty in reaching the new light level cap, this update also features new story quests, improved gear, improved armor, and a new raid to fight the Taken. These additions make the quests, in general, more interesting and give players more reasons to return to explore the outer world of Destiny 2. Along with these changes, the game has also seen an influx of new players signing up for the beta, many of whom are just now discovering the joys of this free-to-play online role-playing game.
Destiny 2: Anniversary is the first expansion to be released for the Destiny franchise. Unlike the previous expansions, which included several different story missions, this one focuses entirely on the multiplayer portion of the game. This means that players will be required to work together as a group, forming covenants and raiding groups to take down bosses. The Taken are still being fought and protected by the Guardians, but the focus in this update is on how you can play with friends and forge a more social community within the game.
Another new area for players to dive into is the dark region of the Guardian’s Tower. A new area called the Lost Coast is filled with Taken vessels and a few unknown Exotics that were lost during the events of the second expansion. In addition to all of this, there will also be a couple of new quests that will allow you to gain access to some of the better items in the game. This is one area in which the Taken can really make an impact, so be sure to check out the Taken Sabotage quest, which is located in the Hive section of The Crucible.
Destiny 2: Anniversary is only available for those who own and play the original Destiny. If you’re not one of the lucky few that owns the game, don’t worry – there are ways to gain access to the other three expansions as well. You can purchase the base game through Amazon or try downloading the freehold content via iTunes. As for the future of Destiny, there are no definite plans for additional expansions, but developer Bungie has said that they “will definitely” add more content in the future. For now, all you can do is play and have fun.