Destiny 2: Into the Light starts today, and in case it wasn’t apparent during the multiple livestreams last month, it’s a great time to be a Destiny 2 fan. In fact, there’s so much in today’s release that this article is only going to focus on aspects that might appeal to three different types of Guardians:
- Cooperators (I win when the team wins)
- Perfectionists (I win when my run is perfect)
- Collectors (I win when I own everything)
Feel free to skip to the section that sounds most like you or try a little bit of everything; you might discover a new type of fun.
For Co-op Thrill-Seeking Guardians
Into playing with friends and turning the heat up to see how much your finely honed teamwork can take? Meet Onslaught, a new wave-based defensive activity where teams of three will face increasingly challenging waves of enemies hellbent on destroying your Advanced Defense Unit.
It’s a new type of gameplay in Destiny 2 that gets even more interesting when you start constructing upgrades like turrets (that until now have mostly been pointed at Guardians) and decoys (that until now have only been sweeping up after Guardians).
“We’ve had turrets in the game for a while, but rarely have they been on our side,” said Clayton Kisko, a designer on the Destiny 2 team. “Having support with this much enemy density is exhilarating. It’s really rewarding when a turret that you or your teammates built has your back when you’re surrounded by enemies.”
But who’s cleaning up the mess these turrets make? Well, it turns out that your decoy comes with a broom. “It is a Sweeper Bot!” Kisko says. “They are amazing at pulling aggro from enemies and clumping them up for the perfect grenade opportunity. And they start sweeping right away. Enemies can’t stand this one simple trick the Sweeper Bot does. Just watch as they surround it with hatred.”
Decoys can be upgraded into Redjacks and a final secret version. Just make sure someone on the team is building them because this tidy technology might be the difference between a victory and a total team wipe.
“Things ramp as you progress through the waves and eventually get to a point where if everyone dies at once, the run ends. On Legend difficulty, this is how Onslaught works from the start! We can’t wait to see how people work together, master the mechanics, and clear the final wave.”
For Speed-Demon Perfectionist Guardians
Are you someone who loves puzzles and tightly crafted combat encounters that can be played with a team of three (but maybe you secretly can’t wait to do it solo)?
For you, we have two of the most well-regarded Exotic missions ever made in Destiny 2. Both The Whisper and Zero Hour along with their Exotic weapons are back and they’ve been updated.
Mike Profeta, one of the designers who worked on the new version of Zero Hour, spoke about how the team was able to stay true to the mission’s experience while also making it feel modern and challenging despite how god-killing powerful Guardians have become.
“We explored several options to try and match the original’s difficulty, but things didn’t quite feel right. Then partway through development, we opened an old build of the game and took note of all the unique activity options that were in the original mission. We replicated them as closely as possible, made some small adjustments and additions, and that was our eureka moment; it made all the difference and suddenly it felt exactly like Zero Hour should.”
Sometimes, what makes a classic game feel new is how we’ve changed and what we’ve learned that lets us play in a new way. A spotlight moment for this is Zero Hour’s maze… you know the one… with the robot. Don’t look it up!
“We made no changes to the path players carve through the old Tower,” said Profeta. “All the jumping puzzles and combat beats are there and we’re looking forward to seeing how players utilize all their new Guardian tools to overcome these obstacles faster than ever.”
For Gear-Loving Collector Guardians
Are you the type of player who wants… well, everything? Do you need your gear to look stunning? Could you make an Exotic more perfect if only you could craft them?
“When crafting Exotics, players can fine-tune their experience while maintaining the original fantasy of the weapon,” said a designer on the Destiny 2 team. “With Whisper of the Worm, the added barrel and magazine options will let players customize their version of the Sniper Rifle; maybe deciding to max out stability to make crits easier, for example. Outbreak Perfected is similar. The enjoyment of laying down on the trigger and spreading SIVA nanites is still there, but now players can choose a perk like Rewind Rounds to help them maintain their damage output for longer before reloading.”
Like these two impression-making Exotics, we’re also including a collection of weapons known as the BRAVE arsenal. If you’ve heard the name Midnight Coup, Edge Transit, or Hung Jury SR4, you know the tier of weapon we’re talking about here. If those names are new to you, then you have a unique opportunity to experience these weapons for the first time in their newly upgraded form.
The BRAVE arsenal consists of 12 weapons so dangerous that they were outlawed by the Vanguard… until now. And for the aesthetically aware among you, each weapon has a chance to drop as a limited-edition foil variant.
“On top of looking unique, they come fully Masterworked. They also have a unique treatment on their icons resembling tiger stripes so that you’ll still be able to identify the foil version in your inventory even if you remove the ornament to apply a shader.”
Everyone’s welcome
During Destiny 2: Into the Light, you’ll be able to choose a starter kit containing handpicked gear and subclass abilities. Gift of the Thunder Gods is also available if you want even more gear to catch up with your friends at the speed of lightning.
So, build a friendly Sweeper Bot, craft the perfect Whisper, and join us in the Hall of Champions where we’ll be flexing our foil weapons, Superblack shaders, and getting ready to throw hands with the Witness when The Final Shape launches on June 4.
The Final Shape gameplay preview
…getting ready to throw hands with the Witness.
Watch this morning’s Developer Gameplay Preview to hear from our developers and get an early look at the Prismatic subclass arriving when The Final Shape launches on June 4.
See you in the Light, Guardians.