Blogs
on December 15, 2025
[JH]: So, that’s kind of outside the scope of where we have our involvement. We’re super dedicated to story, and the high-level development decisions based on classes or specializations happen amongst other teams. We try our best to have a good narrative wrapper around that decision-making. Our involvement in the PvP is to develop a strong character in Lord Shaxx.
There was an interesting moment when we finally run into the Taken again. As new players, the game acted as if The Taken King never happened. With the possibility of a lot of these moments popping up, how have you handled the whole new player vs. returning player conundrum?
Destiny 2 is good at two things: shooting aliens in the face and doing that same thing with friends. Destiny 2 screwed the pooch on players as it's not only is on three platforms, but those three platforms can totally interact… oh wait, no they can’t. Destiny 2’s lack of cross-play is frustrating for the obvious reasons. Being able to play with friends in an online space is one of the many reasons people play online games and one of the biggest reasons people play Destiny 2. Having Guardians on PS4, Xbox One and PC is great as it means a wider audience, but it sucks when Guardians can’t play with their friends over on either of the other platforms. Much like Kotaku discussed in their latest Splitscreen podcast , this is a great way to tear people apart. Instead of enjoying the raid with all my friends, now I get to hear about how my friends did this without me over on Xbox or PC, or vice-versa, and it doesn’t feel good.
Starting with Record Books seems like the appropriate place. Destiny took the idea of achievements or milestones, whatever they might be called, and put them in the form of Record Books. A way for Guardians to keep track of all their glorious achievement plus receive gifts for leveling up through the Record Book that can be shown off when around other Guardians. Nothing like a sweet skin, right? Much like its Age of Triumph title comes the ultimate Record Book. Not only is this Record Book the largest seen so far, but it also is tough as nails to get through. It is sure to keep any Guardian busy, especially those that might be returning. What’s nice about the Age of Triumph Book is even if it seems like a slog (nothing new for Destiny), the records are easy to achieve, especially before September. Nothing bombastic or hardcore. Just a challenging but fair checklist. Things players will find worth doing, hell maybe even starting up that class you’ve always wanted to play but never got around too. September is a long way away after all and that Age of Triumph book wont fill itself out.
Convinced yet, Guardian? Ready to come back to the fold instead of drinking your woes away locked in a dark dingy Tower bar? Sure, you might see Cayde-6 roll on through, but does he really have anything interesting to say yet? He’s just waiting for the action he has no idea is on the way. The Cabal have been a long time coming and what better way to kick off Destiny 2 then an all-out assault on the place Guardians call home? Get it while it’s hot Guardian, the Tower won’t be around for much longer and all that hard work you’ve put in over the years (or ignored), well either keep at it or kiss it good bye. See you in space, Guardian.
House of Wolves is almost completely avoidable as it mainly sets up a wave-based cooperative experience. Here, the Fallen leader of the House of Wolves, Kell Skolas, breaks out of jail and sets forth plans to attack the Last City. The Queen requests you capture him and throw him back in his cell. Skolas has beef with the Queen as The Wolves and the Reef did battle at some point, at least until Variks, the current Warden of the Prison of Elders, switched sides and betrayed his Fallen brothers. You catch him and put him back where he belongs.
[Jason Harris]: It’s really an amazing narrative opportunity to strip away the powers. It’s the tried and true, "is Superman really Superman without his powers," scenario. If given the opportunity, we would have loved to do more missions without players having their Light, but that is not the case. I looked at it as nothing more than a great story opportunity.
Mercury sits happily at the top of the destinations menu like it was there all along. Brother Vance welcomes Guardians with open arms to the Lighthouse (only reserved for the best of PvP in Destiny), waiting for Osiris' return. Like everything else to follow though, Mercury quickly proves that it is a veiled guise for a rather bland play space. It's small while giving of the illusion of unlimited potential. It only has one public event, and while covering much more ground than other public events, it’s still the only one (plus sparrows don’t work). At least the other destinations have multiples. The Infinite Forest is a clever trick, that has been pulled before, it’s just on a slightly larger scale, not confined to a space like the Prison of Elders from House of Wolves in Destiny 2 collectibles. It’s doing the same thing though, just changing the facade.