Expect weapons to be more than just DPS machines when The Final Shape expansion launches in 2024.
16.08.2023 - 11:45 / techradar.com / Joe Blackburn
Destiny 2's game director promises a free PvP map back later this year, following the negative response to the recent State of the Game post.
Earlier this month, Bungie shared a State of the Game blog post that addressed the Destiny 2 communities' complaints, where it was stated that the studio didn't have the resources to release more than one PvP map per calendar year. The post was received with backlash from the community, considering Bungie is a massive studio owned by Sony.
Now, Destiny 2 game director Joe Blackburn has released an apology video on <a href=«https://twitter.com/joegoroth/status/1691512349398822914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1691512349398822914%7Ctwgr%5E5f48c34425f52de31663a2a42b451f9b1980bdb2%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pcgamer.com%2Fbungie-goes-into-damage-control-mode-as-game-director-admits-the-state-of-the-game-update-wasnt-up-to-our-standards-for-what-you-all-expect%2F» target="_blank" data-url=«https://twitter.com/joegoroth/status/1691512349398822914?ref_src=» https:>Twitter
, responding to the backlash and addressing players' concerns (via PC Gamer).Blackburn started out by admitting that the State of the Game post «wasn't up to our standards» for what players expect as communication.
Trying something different, yall have 15 minutes to chat? pic.twitter.com/wzB6xqJPGUAugust 15, 2023
«It didn't provide the high-level vision that we normally provide,» he said. «Truly, a bunch of us were heads down working on The Final Shape and weren't able to give it the care and love we normally put in… And that's nobody's fault but mine.»
The game director went on to share a breakdown of what the team aims to go forward with Destiny 2, including PvP, armor, its improved communication strategy, and the upcoming Gamescom 2023 reveal of The Final Shape expansion.
One of the most notable things Blackburn spoke on was PvP maps and has promised that a free PvP map pack will be released later this year, effectively walking back the original comment in the blog post about not having the resources to do so.
He also shared that Bungie will add more modes in the game's core playlists and that Destiny 2 will now have a dedicated PvP team, with the developers acting as a «PvP strike team» to focus on that aspect of the game.
«One of the most exciting parts about these strike teams is, we build them based off of community feedback,» he explained. «So these strike teams are built from the ground up to look at, 'What are the pain points that are hitting our community the most?' So all this list is going to be built and burned down from, 'Hey, these are the big issues the PvP community is looking at in Destiny 2.»
The community seems to have responded well to Blackburn's
Expect weapons to be more than just DPS machines when The Final Shape expansion launches in 2024.
Recently, my Destiny 2 clanmates and I took the healthy and responsible decision not to participate in the next raid race. The way things work in Destiny 2 is that for the first 48 hours of any new or reprised raid a modifier called 'Contest Mode' is active, during which time player power is capped 20 levels under the enemies in each encounter. Result: you deal less damage and take much more. For those who don't have a well-drilled fireteam and meta loadouts, the experience is bracing—particularly as fatigue creeps in, and the tempers of old gamers with decaying thumb skill begin to fray.
Though the reveal of Destiny 2: The Final Shape certainly could’ve done with an extra banger or two, Bungie is now seemingly on a bit of a path toward redemption with the Destiny community after the failures of the Lightfall DLC. The studio’s hype machine for the 2024 DLC is already ramping up, though, and an all-new interview held by the Game Director, Joe Blackburn, shed additional light on next year’s grand release.
Titans have never had a hard time in Destiny 2 , per se, but it’s been a while since they’ve felt as good as a new Strand Aspect makes the class feel. Season 22 debuts the Banner of War Titan, and it’s a force to be reckoned with. Not only does the Aspect lock in a constant stream of healing and buffs, but it is also almost infinitely customizable. Players can easily combine the Banner of War effects alongside their favorite Exotic weapons and armor. And, best of all, it fulfills the Titan power fantasy, encouraging Guardians to get right in the face of their enemies.
The original Destiny storyline opened following the collapse of a vast Terran civilization at the hands of an invading, amorphous Darkness and its various alien accomplices - an advance stymied only by a benevolent Big Dumb Object known as the Traveller. It cast you as an ancient warrior, resurrected by a flying robot to reclaim humankind's old dominions together with their antique, storied weapons and gear. So much of its appeal for me, back in 2014, was the mystique of that reclamation process, bolstered by alternately zany, obnoxious, fragmentary and/or intriguing writing that expanded upon the viral mythological element in Halo.
Laying out Destiny 2's long-smoldering Crucible woes, game director Joe Blackburn says the studio was at one point unsure of the viability of PvP altogether because it hadn't "seen it move the needle."
It's been two weeks since the mood music in Destiny 2 got so bad that game director Joe Blackburn took to his personal Twitter to deliver a video message addressing various community complaints and concerns. For a studio that tends to deal in lengthy blog posts, such a personal approach only underlined the perceived urgency of the situation. Ironically, the latest meltdown had been triggered by one such 'State of the Game' post, which, rather than allaying concerns, had air-dropped petrol onto them.
Bungie appears to have done something very, very right with Destiny 2: Season of the Witch, according to the community. After a number of fumbles stemming from Lightfall‘s release onwards, it looked like the studio just couldn’t catch a break with Destiny 2. Now, thankfully, things appear to have settled down, and players seem pretty happy with Season 22’s key novelties.
By Tom Warren, a senior editor covering Microsoft, PC gaming, console, and tech. He founded WinRumors, a site dedicated to Microsoft news, before joining The Verge in 2012.
Bungie officially revealed the details for its upcoming Destiny 2 DLC The Final Shape today, the conclusion of its “Light and Darkness” saga that started all the way back in 2014. The Final Shape will debut on Feb. 27.
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