To the surprise of just about everyone, Bungie made the announcement today that they are splitting ways with Activision, with the former retaining publishing rights and control of the Destiny game going forward. In a joint statement released alongside this news, Activision/Bungie noted “going forward, Bungie will own and develop the franchise, and Activision will increase its focus on owned IP and other projects. Activision and Bungie are committed to a seamless transition for the Destiny franchise and will continue to work closely together during the transition on behalf of the community of Destiny players around the world.”
Activision stock has dropped nearly 7% after trading hours following this announcement.
Bungie this week is showing off new weapons coming in Destiny’s Forsaken expansion, including a projectile sword, a rocket launcher that shoots two rockets, and a bow that lets you see through walls. Check it out at the embedding above.
It feels like we can’t go more than a week or so without Bungie being forced to apologize to its community for another dumpster fire of a PR decision, with the promise that they will listen closer moving forward. With each apology centered around either a hard-to-overlook bout of poor design or perceptibly underhanded attempt to cripple game progression to bring player attention to the real money Eververse, it may not be surprising that players starting to turn away from Destiny 2 and Bungie’s investors are taking notice.
In a note to investors titled “Destiny is Not in a Good Place,” Doug Creutz of analyst firm Cowen points to Destiny 2 appearing to have a problem keeping its players engaged, with issues surrounding microtransactions and Bungie’s poor communication and response to criticism being at the forefront of his concerns. Creutz also focuses on Destiny 2 Twitch viewership when discussing player engagement, stating that franchise view counts are at an all time low. Destiny 2 is apparently bringing in 4,000-7,000 views on a Friday afternoon compared to 14,000-17,000 from Destiny 1 a year ago.
Cruetz also believes that Destiny 2 may have a much harder time turning itself around than Destiny 1 did, owing to a more competitive market.
“We do think Bungie still has some opportunity to fix the game’s problems over the next year and recapture engagement, but we’re not sure they have the ability to pull it off at this point. We also note that Destiny currently has more serious competition in its genre from a refurbished Division (Ubisoft) and the indie title Warframe than it did three years ago, when D1 had its own share of player dissatisfaction.”
Not a stranger to controversy, Destiny 2 came under the spotlight yet again this past week during the launch of the Curse of Osiris expansion. While introducing new raids and quests, players quickly became angry over the news that players who did not own the expansion would be locked out of existing content, namely prestige raids, Trials of the Nine, and more.
In a post on the Bungie Blog, the team has confirmed the changes as an “unacceptable lapse,” and confirmed that prestige raids for the base game would be brought down to their original power level requirement, allowing all players to obtain the prestige raid trophy as well as complete the Legend of Acrius exotic shotgun. In the future, the team hopes to add a third prestige difficulty that will scale with the new power available in each expansion.
We’ve heard from the community that both of these plans aren’t working. The Prestige Raid was a novel experience that players value, even if they don’t own Curse of Osiris, and it was a mistake to move that experience out of reach. Throughout the lifetime of the Destiny Franchise, Trials has always required that players owned the latest Expansion. However, for Destiny 2, Trials of The Nine launched as part of the main game, so it’s not right for us to remove access to it.
The full Bungie Blog contains details on how each activity will be handled going forward.
For today’s Chaturday, I want to talk about Destiny 2 and Bungie, more specifically a recent announcement regarding experience gains and how the game has been effectively lying to players since launch.
For those of you not in the know, we learned this week that Destiny 2 has been effectively lying about experience gains and limiting them for players who farm experience. Once a player hits level 20, which does not take long, every level thereafter rewards a Bright Engram, an item sold in the Eververse store (cash shop), for free. As such, Bungie has a monetary interest in encouraging players to drop real cash on said Engrams.
One player, through heavily researching his gameplay and how the game doles out experience, discovered that the game would limit experience during more intense activities. Furthermore, while the game would display experience gains, the actual experience given would be limited by up to half if the player was participating in public events.
Bungie responded to the growing complaints by confirming not just that the experience throttling was present and intentional, but that it was not working as intended and would be shut off.
“We’ve seen community discussion around XP gain in Destiny. After reviewing our data, we agree that the system is not performing the way we’d like it to. Today, we’d like to describe what’s going on under the hood, and talk about what you can expect going forward when it comes to earning XP in Destiny 2.
Currently, XP will scale up when playing longer or fixed duration activities like Crucible competitive multiplayer matches and the Leviathan Raid, and XP will scale down when playing activities that can be quickly, repeatedly chained, like grinding Public Events. We are not happy with the results, and we’ve heard the same from the community.
Effective immediately, we are deactivating this system.
As a result, players will see XP earn rates change for all activities across the board, but with all values being displayed consistently in the user interface. Over the course of the next week, we will be watching and reviewing XP game data to ensure that these changes meet our expectations, as well as yours. Any additional updates to this system will be communicated to you via our official channels.”
In all likelihood, the answer probably lies within a poorly tuned algorithm intended to prevent some of the easy farming zones that cropped up in Destiny 1. That said, it’s hard to ignore the convenient coincidence that the game is giving misleading numbers on the exact system that Bungie ties its microtransactions to.
For a time in which consumers are already becoming jaded enough thanks to the predatory launches of titles like Battlefront II and Need for Speed: Payback, it makes sense that people are reading this news and immediately assuming the worst: that Bungie deliberately capped experience gains to promote their cash shop.
It’s also hard to view their response as anything other than a company that got caught red handed. It’s great to see that Bungie actually responded and is indeed making changes (although players are still reporting nerfed experience rates), the announcement will probably do little to calm a community that has been airing its grievances for various reasons since the title launched a few months ago.
It looks like certain recording software is triggering permanent bans in Destiny 2 on PC.
Head on over to the Bungie forums and you’ll find tons of posts from players reporting that they’ve been banned within hours, some within minutes of booting up Destiny 2 for the first time, some before even making it into the game. According to an FAQ on the official website, software with “overlay” features is incompatible with Destiny 2 due to security features programmed into the game to stop how certain cheats are injected into the game code. While the website uses the term “incompatible,” it doesn’t actually state that using said software regardless might be a bannable offense.
Well it is. Permanently.
The list of “incompatible” programs includes the Nvidia Geforce Experience, Fraps, Discord, Mumble, Afterburner, and more. Virtually any program with some sort of overlay feature is incompatible to some extent with the game. And to top it off, according to numerous users affected by these bans for game overlays, Bungie support is doing absolutely nothing to help. According to Bungie’s support, they will not review bans under any circumstance:
There are NO options to dispute or overturn account restrictions or bans. Permanent account bans are only implemented with rigorous checking to ensure that the innocent are not punished alongside the guilty. Bungie does not comment on or discuss individual account restriction or bans.
If players are getting immediately banned for overlay software, that makes Bungie’s claim of “rigorous checking” a complete lie. Bungie might want to check their policy at the door in this case, because they are looking at a PR disaster and very likely some litigation if the issue is as widespread as it appears.
As of yet, none of Bungie’s social media accounts have acknowledged the bans, nor have any staff posted on the forums. MMO Fallout is attempting to get in touch with Bungie/Activision for contact and will follow up once we have more information. Please note that this is technically unconfirmed on our end, but the sheer number of people claiming bans for the same issue has led us to issue this warning.
Destiny 1 was a pretty earth shattering game, not in the sense that it broke new ground but in how many people it managed to snare in its repetitive yet addictive gameplay. While the title was a bust in many minds thanks to broken promises and features that seemed obviously slashed for time, Destiny carried a certain I don’t know what that kept people engaged for a long time after launch. Where other titles sell seven figures and watch their communities quickly die off, Destiny’s users were still logging in crazy hours two years after launch, hunting down all of the game’s exotic gear.
Destiny 2 feels like someone took an MMO and sheared off the leveling experience, leaving only the end-game gear grind and some bits and pieces left over. Those of you who played through Destiny will be familiar with most of the mechanics from this sequel, and as many will already know or quickly realize, the “true game” as some would call it doesn’t really start until you’re level 20 and beat the campaign.
Neither of which take a particularly long time to complete, but the story and world seem far more fleshed out an interesting than they did in the previous title, in which a great portion of the game’s lore was locked away off-game on the Bungie website. All you really need to know going into this game is that you are a Guardian, a special person who literally can’t die as you are gifted powers by the Traveler, a construct that came to Earth and then died, bequeathing humans with its powers of light. As a Guardian of the light, your job is to protect the light, all of those people who can die, and fight off the coming darkness.
Destiny 2 starts off with an invasion of the tower by the Red Legion, led by the big baddie of the campaign Dominus Ghaul. Seeking to claim the Traveler’s gift for himself, Ghaul destroys the last remaining human city, captures the Traveler, and nearly kills you (the player). The ensuing campaign is all about taking back what was once yours, and reclaiming the Tower and driving off Ghaul and his forces.
Thankfully, unlike its predecessor, Destiny 2 treats its characters as though they are real people and not simply cardboard cutouts to vendor weapons to players. I honestly couldn’t tell you if any of the characters from Destiny 2 were in Destiny 1, and for all intent and purpose they might as well be completely new people. But with Zavala, Cayde-6, and other side characters like Failsafe help build a world that is interesting to learn more about.
Once you finish the campaign, the game opens up and everything becomes available. You have four planets, each of which has its own set of public events, missions, patrols, faction currency, and more. You’ll be able to embark on missions that offer varying challenges in return for powerful, game changing exotic equipment. I managed to get my hands rather early on a Sunshot, a hand cannon that carries explosive rounds and causes everything I shoot to explode and damage those around them.
Strikes are Destiny’s answer to MMO dungeons, these are three player instances that have you completing various objectives in return for glimmer and gear. While the standard strikes are open for matchmaking, the more difficult version does require communication and thus you’ll need to form your own fireteam. Same goes for Raids, high tier dungeons with gear requirements that require you to know who is doing what and when, and thus is not available for public matchmaking. Crucible is once again the place to go for player vs player matches.
But you’ll find plenty to do in Destiny 2 on your own as well. Public events dot the landscape on each planet, and each event has a secret trigger that unlocks its heroic version, increasing the difficulty while also increasing the rewards. You might be annoyed to find yourself in a zone where nobody else is farming events, but that can be pretty quickly fixed and more often than not you’ll find yourself surrounded by players who seem to know exactly what they’re doing.
Thankfully Destiny 2 continues its series staple of having some of the tightest gunplay in the genre. Just about every weapon has a satisfying kick as you blow off a Fallen’s head, shatter a Vex’s shield, or take down some big bad guy who is just asking for a shotgun blast to the face.
Destiny 2_20170913002506
In a lot of ways, Destiny 2 feels like Destiny 1 and Destiny 1 more like Destiny .5. While the maps are wholly new, the enemies you’ll face in them are virtually identical to those from the previous game. Rather than building on to the currencies of Destiny 1, Destiny 2 streamlines or outright removes them. And while customizing your character is much more in-depth thanks to shaders being per-body part, it’s hard not to see through the cynical cash grab that was making them single use and placing them as part of the cash shop. You can get a ton of shaders through gameplay, but they come in packs of three, for your four pieces of armor.
I don’t have many gripes with Destiny 2, but considering how the original improved greatly during its first two years, it only seems logical that Destiny 2 will continue to be improved upon post-launch.
Bungie has announced that a piece of equipment after it came to their attention that said armor bears the mark of a “hate symbol.” The company announced the alteration via Twitter, noting that the armor bears a striking resemblance to the Kekistani flag, a meme that has become synonymous with the alt-right, a collection of Trump supporters, along with the frog Pepe and other such memes.
“It’s come to our attention that a gauntlet in Destiny 2 shares elements with a hate symbol. It is not intentional. We are removing it. Our deepest apologies. This does NOT represent our values, and we are working quickly to correct this. We renounce hate in all forms.”
Bungie CEO Pete Parsons posted the following on Twitter in response to the announcement:
“At Bungie, our company values place the highest emphasis on inclusion of all people and respect for all who work with us or play our games.”
The announcement has been met with both positive and negative reactions across the net. The term “kek” was popularized in part due to World of Warcraft, where cross-faction language changes “lol” to “kek,” with the latter slowly replacing the former in online chatter. While the Kekistani flag has been labeled a hate symbol by some outfits due to its resemblance to the swastika, supporters claim that the flag is a mockery of ethnic nationalism, not a symbol of support for it.
Regardless, it appears that Bungie is having nothing of it.
Bungie has released the worldwide reveal trailer for Destiny 2, laying down the plot and setting the stage for the sequel to one of the most played games on consoles. Set to launch on consoles and PC this September 8, players will get a glimpse of gameplay at that world premiere on May 18. For plot synopsis, check out the paragraph below.
“In Destiny 2, the last safe city on Earth has fallen and lay in ruins, occupied by a powerful new enemy and his elite army, the Red Legion. Every player creates their own character called a Guardian, humanity’s chosen protectors. As a Guardian in Destiny 2, players must master new abilities and weapons to reunite the city’s forces, stand together and fight back to reclaim their home. The official Destiny 2 reveal trailer, Rally the Troops, shows two of the Vanguard, leaders of the Guardians, inspiring the people of the last city in an impassioned (and occasionally sarcastic) call to arms. In Destiny 2, players will answer this call, embarking on a fresh story filled with new destinations around our solar system to explore, and an expansive amount of activities to discover. There is something for almost every type of gamer in Destiny 2, including gameplay for solo, cooperative and competitive players set within a vast, evolving and exciting universe.”
Gamers who haven’t made their way to the current generation of consoles will be disappointed to find out that Destiny’s next expansion, Rise of Iron, will not be available on their respective platforms. Set to launch in September, Rise of Iron will be exclusive to Playstation 4 and Xbox One. While The Taken King will still be available on older consoles, Bungie warns that future content will be limited on the 360 and PS3, including:
Future Game Updates and Content Releases
Some Destiny Events and Content
Purchasing Silver
Accessing new Eververse Item purchases across console generations
Some Destiny Companion features on the Mobile App and Bungie.net
Beginning in August, Bungie will be providing an account import tool to upgrade your characters to a newer system. According to the FAQ, upgrades must be within the same console family (PS3 to PS4, 360 to XOne), under the same ID, and not all content will transfer. In addition, older consoles will no longer receive major content updates.
The list of features being disabled on older consoles includes:
MMO Fallout 