*Disclaimer: This review will be updated with the raid when it becomes available on the 18th. Until then, enjoy the rest of the information.
Destiny was/is an ambitious idea that this reviewer fell in love with last year, despite its flaws. The concept of playing an online first-person shooter with massive multiplayer online (MMO) and role-playing game elements was/is a fun idea. How it was executed and implemented originally for Destiny had always been intensely debated, though I’m still unashamed with the amount of fun I garnished from the game.
What can’t be ignored about it is the long-term frustration experienced by those who played it (myself included). Waiting randomly for special weapon drops after dedicating hours to one mission is something that grates at the nerves. My first experience with The Vault of Glass spanned from 9:00p-2:00a, and garnished no reward to compensate for time and effort. And it just wasn’t about the weapons/armor, rather the leveling itself which depends on the weapons/armor. Of course, you know this story, Destiny fans, and you’ve experienced these things, so I don’t really need to refresh your memory on what the game was in the past. Yep, ‘past’.
As of today, Destiny: The Taken King changes the game, literally and figuratively.
The story you want to hear
With the new release of a story-driven expansion, which features a new system of upgrades, new weapons/armor, new enemies, a more excited cast of characters and new ways to play, there’s a lot to be hopeful about with Destiny’s future. More importantly, all of what you get with The Taken King makes sense and seems to draw closer to the original Bungie dream that never came to fruition in the original release.
The first thing you’ll notice when you’re loading up The Taken King is the story. It’s more intense than any other story that Bungie has put together for Destiny. The Taken King is out for revenge for the death of his son and is going to do anything in his power to see that revenge through. The Queen and her troops have been severely damaged from a failed attack on the King and all eyes turn to a small group of Guardians (mainly you) to help infiltrate the Taken King’s Dreadnaught ship and do some ‘Space James Bond’ shit to take down the king from the inside out.
While the story itself is intriguing, the real sell for it comes through the acting, which feels a lot more together and absent of boredom. Led by Nolan North as your guardian’s ghost, his voice talent hits the right note when it comes to selling the situation of the Taken King and its overall story. North is helped out by the talent of Nathan Fillion as the wise-cracking, mainly roguish Cayde-6, who helps to lead the missions from afar and mostly without permission. Capping the experience is the ‘go-by-the-book’ Commander Zavala played by the enormously talented, and Fringe alum, Lance Reddick. All three combined equal out to a great story and fantastic experience.
This, good folks, is only the icing on the cake we haven’t even dug into yet.
The real beef inside your Destiny burrito
While the pretty wrapper has been immensely improved and has become intriguing, even attention grabbing through its proper story structure, the real heart of it all is beating strong from within. The first thing you’ll take notice of, and you’ve already taken notice of it, is that the leveling system has been completely re-done. By re-done, I mean that Bungie finally got with the program and decided to go a typical MMO route when it comes to leveling your character. Ditching the old requirements of finding equipment to level your character, they have made leveling and light completely two separate things. What does this mean? Well, you can level up now through tons and tons of enemy kills. Sure the ranking of the enemy is taken into account when it comes to gaining a certain amount of XP (meaning you can’t just kill tons of weak enemies for maximum benefits), but the fact that you can gain XP through killing enemies is a much better route for the game to take. Immensely better route. Like if it was a decision between toast and a cupcake better decision (always go the cupcake path). So, if you’re killing enemies over and over again on missions, you’re going to get XP along the way. That will lead to you leveling up and progressing further. The cap is at 40 this time around and it took me 6-7 hours to achieve that from level 33 — and I was slacking.
As for the light levels, it shifts focus into more attribute centric needs. This means that you can gain light points through armor/weaponry acquisition and those points will translate into more mission specific attribute needs. If you need one attribute more than another during certain missions, you can adjust armor/weapon to accomplish those needs. It really does act as a separated leveling device that has more use than just a way to level up your character in the game. In short, it matters far more than it used to matter and there is no separation anxiety from leveling.
Shifting gears to weaponry/armor, all weapons/armor have been downgraded in levels. You know that by now, though. What that means when The Taken King launches today is that you get a bevy of remedial weapons/armor options, well remedial by identification. You’ll see a lot of green and light blue color coded items, we’re all shamefully accustomed to color coded identification, when you start The Taken King, but what that translates to is a whole bunch of badass when you use them. Sure the numbers have dropped on these things, but the numbers have dropped on everything, which means that those green/light blue weapons are far more valuable during gameplay than they seem. Consider this a proper reset of weaponry, where the weapons are far more abundant, interesting and available. That was one point of interest with The Taken King that Bungie wanted to focus on, making better weapons available as rewards for accomplishing things. There are also new items like pendants that have certain attributes attached to them that you can gain through rewards. Lots of stuff, folks. Anyway, this isn’t to say that you’re not going to get a repeat here and there, but the game is far more aware of your accomplishments than it used to be. That should put a smile on any Destiny player’s face.
Oh, and about Gjallarhorn related things? *hugs* It was a reoccurring sadness in a group of video game writers, whom I will not specifically mention by name. Easy come, easy go.
Anyway, the leveling, weaponry/armor adjustments and upgrades are for the best. This helps to bring an even feel to the game and, more importantly, the game no longer feels like a chore. You play video games to get away from responsibilities and chores. That’s their purpose. I’m talking to you, Shenmue 3. *ahem* Anyway, I don’t think anyone should be disappointed with the results of this new, re-adjusted system. Bungie did a good thing by making the initial game fun again and they’ll probably reap the benefits of having new players take a chance with this release.
So, what about quests/strikes and such? Before we get into the nitty-gritty of what type of new missions to expect, just know that you’ve got a visually easier time keeping up with that stuff. In your player menu list there is a new category called ‘Quests’. You have that now with version 2.0 and it’s remarkably nice to use, though I will admit that some of the explanations of what one has to do to accomplish a quest can become a little baffling, if one isn’t paying close attention. For example, there was a quest where I had to take down the new enemy, the Taken, and a list of ‘needs’ was laid out. I had to collect a few things, take down a few champions and complete a few other items of interest to complete the quest. I understood about seventy-five percent of what was asked of me, but the details on how to do it were a bit absent. I wish that Bungie would provide a few more details, maybe give some hints on how/where/etc without necessarily pointing directly to the location. It’s just my experience that everything seemed a bit shallow in the details department, though eventually finding the items of quest interest did eventually happened. Anyway, seeing the quests on one page, and not cluttered with other crap in the game, is a huge plus when it comes to wanting some sort of organizational direction. I like organization with my game menus.
Staying literally on the same page, Bungie has also now included the bounties on the right side of the Quests page. You can look at them, enjoy them there and…wait for it…actually turn in your bounties from that page. That’s right, no more going back to the Tower to empty out your bounties. Veteran players of Destiny will absolutely adore that, as it doesn’t break up the gameplay one bit. It sounds kind of minor, but those who hardcored this game since day one know what type of excitement this option brings to the table. It’s a simple, yet a welcoming organizational move. Speed up the gameplay anyway you can and you might make your game more enjoyable, as is the case in this instance.
Getting briefly back to the story of The Taken King, before you travel to the Dreadnaught that is firmly placed on the rings of Saturn, you’re sent out on a quest to obtain the Sunbreaker option on Mercury (I’m a Titan, so this was very exciting). You’re taken through a nice little initiation where you obtain the power of the sun and wield the Sunbreaker hammer, which causes a LOT of problems for a LOT of folks in both the campaign and multiplayer modes. I can’t tell you enough about how absolutely brutal the Sunbreaker is in almost every aspect of Destiny. All those asshole Warlock and Hunter characters with their cheap ways to take down Titans are now in for a rough ride. Once you unlock and ignite the Sunbreaker, via super charge, you basically are briefly untouchable (you can die with it active) and absolutely brutal to your enemies. In the campaign mode, bosses took some mega damage from this weapon. In multiplayer, it ruined a lot of days during Rift (activate that sucker when your enemy is trying to ignite your gate — so much fun to see such disappointment, even if you can’t audibly hear it). Anyway, once you grab that, you’re off to go do some missions that lead up to the fight with The Taken King.
The first mission on the campaign trail introduces you to a new enemy called The Taken. They’re essentially ghosts of other race of enemies that move quickly, sometimes divide into two enemies and that are just creepy in so many ways. They’re born of dark matter and remind me of creepy enemies from Dead Space (not directly, just in essence). Anyway, they’re annoyingly fast, powerful and they certainly separate them from the boring enemies you’re used to encountering. They’re everywhere in the new campaign and Bungie has placed them in older campaigns as well. You get them in a lot of new and old places, which is one way of making older missions more interesting.
Pulling back to the new stuff, the missions on the Dreadnaught range from simple to downright tough. The overall campaign took about 3-4 hours to get through. That’s not including the exploring that I probably should have done on the Dreadnaught; this is just a straight-up run through to complete the campaign. The path to get to Oryx, The Taken King, has many steps to it. Some of them are get through and eliminate a bevy of enemies that lead up to a mini-boss/champion. Other steps include dismantling the main gun on the Dreadnaught or trying to take in power from multi-column energy pillars in a room (that is a fun one, very time-based — dealing with enemies and fading energy percentages is great). There is even a stealth mission that is well-placed, though I won’t go into too many details of the how/why/where. The unique world set up for you in the Dreadnaught adds some much needed variety to the Destiny universe. Missions that involve seeking out passageways to final bosses are welcomed intellectual stimulants for a game that has been generally a ‘point and shoot’ experience. The campaign throws a lot of different looks at you and it does a good job of keeping them all just lengthy enough to feel like they’re not short, but not too lengthy to feel like they drag on. It’s an incredible balancing act. Most importantly, the campaign makes the experience interesting through story and gives you motivation to get through it all, and not just for rewards (though, they are nice).
In addition to the campaign, there is also a lot of encouragement to explore the Dreadnaught. There are runes laying around that can be used on statues to activate the Summoning Rune events (get that in a second). You can also find calcified fragments everywhere, which reportedly are put together to form an ancient weapon (possibly a sword). Those things, and other items of interest, are embedded on the Dreadnaught pretty secretly, so it’s going to be tough to find them without exploring the place via patrol. Bungie did a solid job with creating a nice, new, big place to explore and to find wonderful things. You will want to explore this ship every chance you get when you’re not doing missions/strikes/etc..
Now, the Summoning Rune events are fun additions to the gameplay and are not to be taken lightly. When you find/win runes (through missions and whatnot), find a set of statues to place them on and you activate an event on the Dreadnaught (a room near the statues) that reap really nice rewards. As we all know thanks to the system Resident Evil is built with, and scarred us by, anytime you’re rewarded nice things, it always comes at a huge price. The Summoning Rune is broken into three separate tiers of difficulty:
Tier 1 = Easy-peasy (usually one boss, tough, but manageable).
Tier 2 = Medium difficulty (usually one really tough boss, maybe two).
Tier 3 = Hard difficulty (usually one-two-three bosses, a time limit and a possibility for their health to regenerate).
This was built for multiple people in mind, though I do know one reviewer who nearly completed a tier 1 on his own. Nearly. So very nearly. Anyhow, there are nice rewards of good weaponry/armor/whatnot related to completing these events, but don’t go into them taking them lightly. You will get your ass kicked more than a few times. The difficulty for these events are compared to that of the Prison of Elders. While certainly not as long and drawn out as Elders, it does require a good plan and a lot of patience to complete these events. Regardless, it is a welcomed addition to the Destiny family and adds just a bit more value to The Taken King package.
Anyway, there are still some mysteries for me to uncover on the campaign side, but this is definitely the right amount of information you should know before heading into The Taken King purchase. There are new strikes included with this title (seven, if my notes are correct), so you’ve got a nice amount of value with this package. There is a lot to do and a lot to explore when it comes to the campaign/patrol side of the Taken King equation.
PvP
On the multiplayer side of The Taken King, there have been some interesting improvements to the PvP. The first, and mostly likely already played by you, dear readers, is the game called Rift. Rift is comparable to Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare’s Uplink, but only in the delivery system of the game. Basically, two competing teams wait for a ‘spark’ to light in the middle of the map and one team races to obtain the spark and light the other team’s rift. If they ignite the rift, they get a huge amount of points. The individual player who takes a chance to get the spark gets points just for holding it and trying to deliver it. It’s pretty nice and it’s a nicely rewarded PvP game.
The maps I played this one on were as follows:
Vertigo (Caloris Basin, Mercury): One of my favorite maps of the bunch with this game. Wide, circular and perfectly laid out for quick escapes to rifts.
Thieves Den (House of Wolves Expansion): While I enjoyed this with House of Wolves, I think it was born to work with Rift. The map is built with multiple rings in mind and it works incredibly well for chasing and catching. In fact, this already known map is the best of the bunch with this game mode.
Frontier (Earth): This is the worst of the bunch. The map is tightly built and it absolutely doesn’t work one bit with Rift. One team can cover and quickly get the spark to the other team’s rift, if that aggressive team is equipped well. It’s just not a lot of fun if you’re on a weaker team.
Memento (Europe – Earth): A european map, which was built with snipers in mind. There is a bevy of broken buildings pushed together.
People who normally play as snipers will have a field day with this one in Rift. To be quite honest, it’s a good map to catch people from afar and ruin their day. It certainly spawned the greatest amount of time to complete Rift when I was reviewing it.
The Dungeons of the Dreadnaught (Saturn): Lines of hallways with giant circles at the end of them. In the middle there is the spark and most certainly a bunch of enemies waiting to pounce on your team. It’s a bit tight, but not quite as tight as Frontier. It is a very balanced board, though, as long, open hallways leave the opportunity for sniping. I gained some sniping confidence in these long hallways.
Rift is a great game that will add quick, intense gameplay into the PvP mix. I like it better than I thought I would and it simply just works well. It’s a perfect device to introduce new maps into the game and it is one I will certainly revisit when I have time to play more games.
Before concluding this review, I would be remiss to forget an implemented mercy rule in Destiny now. If you’re absolutely kicking the shit out of people in PvP, or getting the shit kicked out of you, the game will stop the match and wish the losing team well. I regret to say that this happened a few times during my sessions with The Taken King’s PvP, as my team was on the receiving end of a few loses, but it was a welcomed addition before frustration set in.
Anyway, there is more to do in Destiny: The Taken King, which I intend on doing in the coming days, but until then please know that you’re in for a different, more enjoyable ride than the first time around with the Destiny universe. This should have been the game that Bungie launched with, but as the old saying goes, ‘better late than never’.
