Destiny nailed its gameplay mechanics perfectly out of the gate and those carry beautifully into Destiny 2. Aiming and shooting feel fantastic, while platforming has been tightened up with Guardians now able to clamber over ledges. Jumping is still a little floaty, but the clambering should help players avoid some unnecessary deaths.
It has been a long time since we’ve seen a proper Bungie game on PC. Outside of the first two Halo games ported well after the fact, the now Washington-based studio wasn’t always well known for their console releases. After splitting off from Microsoft and the Halo brand, Bungie worked on their next major project, and while it was met with mixed reception, it quickly became one of the biggest new IPs this generation, inevitably spawning a sequel. Destiny 2 was released last month with numerous improvement to the formula, and even though it didn’t completely blow everyone away, it still has a strong, dedicated fanbase. One group of gamers that still needs to experience the Destiny love is PC players, but finally that has been rectified. Activision and Bungie have released the multi-million selling sequel to the open platform, but is it what PC gamers had hoped for or is this a franchise better left on dedicated consoles?
Still, the EDZ is a gorgeous area to explore, and more visually impressive than the vast majority of Destiny’s worlds with only Venus giving the EDZ a run for its money. While its size may be a bit deceptive, what matters more is if there’s enough content to make exploration worthwhile.
It’s great that open areas finally have a good reason to explore, but finding Lost Sectors can be a bit too easy to find. They’re clearly marked in the world and are even marked on the in-game map. Once the marker is found, the entrance is, typically, right around the corner. Light exploration is a step-up from Destiny’s lack of exploration, but there should be more challenging Lost Sectors that require some sleuthing to find.
At the end of the mission, we finally meet Ghaul, who is terrifying in his all-white armor and his Darth Malak-esque mask. He gives a great speech and welcomes us to a world without light, as he strips the Traveler of its power. He then promptly kicks your de-powered self off the edge of the Tower and the Destiny 2 logo fades in to end the Beta’s mission. I assume the next mission will take place within the city. But the first mission of Destiny 2 impressed and if they can keep that up with the rest of the campaign, it could be great.
Light exploration comes to Destiny 2 thanks to Lost Sectors. These sectors are marked on various trees, boulders, walls, and other surfaces across the EDZ with the entrances hidden nearby. Once inside the sector, players will be faced with an elite unit and their entourage.
While there no new classes, each of the three returning classes get a new subclass. Hunters get Arcstrider, Titans get Sentinel and Warlocks get Dawnblade. Each of the new subclasses is a joy to use and players can unlock their other Destiny 1 subclasses (Gunslinger, Striker and Voidwalker) and The Taken King subclasses (Nightstalker, Sunbreaker and Stormcaller) if the new ones aren’t their cup of tea. Each returning class has been tweaked to make them more viable in Destiny 2, and both new and old are fun to play.
For example, in the EDZ, one Adventure features the Taken taking up residence deep in the forest. At first, the mission is simply about pushing forward and clearing away all hostiles. Following some speculation by Ghost about why the Taken are here, players face off against a Taken Cabal boss who remains shielded as long as grunts are running about. Take care of them, and the boss becomes vulnerable until more grunts spawn.
Who would have ever thought a mobile game would end up on my list? As a big fan of the Hitman franchise since its second iteration, when it was announced that Square Enix Montreal would be working on a mobile game in the same universe, I was no doubt concerned. To my surprise, it ended up being one of the best games of the year. It takes the scenarios we’ve come to love in the full-fledged stealth games and creates bite-sized puzzles. There’s no game on my Nexus 5 that I played more of this year, trying to master each mission, while doing so with the least amount of turns or picking up the optional briefcase. While it’s not what I hope the series will move towards in the future, it is a nice side activity that will distract you for a couple minutes at a time.
Of all the things players can do in the open area, Adventures are the most story-driven. Presented on the map as an orange banner with a white sword, these activities task Guardians with following a series of objectives. Structurally, Adventures most resemble the mission design of missions from the original; get an objective, go clear out a wave of enemies, listen to Ghost speculate a bit, and battle a boss.
Assassin’s Creed II, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves and Mass Effect 2 are some of the greatest sequels of all time, but why? Each of these games had a flawed predecessor that showed great promise, which the developers were able to take and refine into strengths. With Destiny 2, Bungie is looking to achieve something similar. After three years of growing pains throughout the Destiny 2 Beginner Guide 1 era, the developer is finally ready to look to the future with a numbered sequel. With an actual campaign, new worlds to explore and an update to the game’s progression systems, is Destiny 2 the sequel fans deserve or is the number at the end warrantless?
