Destiny

Quick Disclosure - this is first off a review of Destiny: The Taken King DLC and how it enhances the otherwise ho-hum experience of vanilla Destiny 1.0 - It is also taken from my review written for another site which I won't link to here, but is in my profile if curious.

Destiny: The Taken King feels like the game Bungie wanted to put forth a year ago. Cinematics with weight, set pieces reminiscent of the glory days in the Halo franchise, and first person action blending with RPG elements in the right way that make Destiny a true feeling of belonging and instills a desire to continue the fight. Destiny 2.0 looks like to start the games second year strong, and does so.

Note: We got a lot of time in to Taken King, but not a chance to tackle the new raid, which launches this weekend, on September 18 at 10am PST / 1PM ESt. After playing through the campaign and getting some time in the new Crucible modes we feel confident rendering an opinion without the new raid content. If the new raid greatly sways the value of this add-on in a significant way, this review will be updated, but at this time the review stands as-is.

Taken King, Taking things…to a new level

Full disclosure; I gave up on Destiny months ago. I loved the game upon release, blinded by the great first person action and pretty skyboxes Bungie was known for, I poured 89 hours into the game (according to the somewhat depressing wastedondestiny.com). Most of this was early on, and with buddies in groups doing strikes, story, trying to do that grind for gear and get those sweet engrams. After a while I had that moment that happens in most games if we don’t just move on, “what’s the point?”

Bungie pushed along content updates, continually changed a few things here and there, and added bigger things like House of Wolves and The Dark Below, along with events like Prison of Elders, Queen’s Wrath, new social spaces, etc. The game expanded but each time I jumped in, it never felt like it had that heart, nor a reason for me to return.

To put it frankly, I was worried about Taken King, and thought it was a big chance for Bungie to redeem themselves. After playing through a majority of the content, I’m pleased to inform that they have indeed made changes and brought out a true expansion to Destiny. In describing to others, the best way to relate is this is Destiny’s Reaper of Souls.

Changes for the best

There are a lot of changes to the overall quality of life in Destiny: The Taken King, and that spills over to the base game in ways that new players, as well as old, will most definitely appreciate. There are too many changes here to list, but we’ll name a few to get you started. Things like the new subclasses (which are each individual and incredible), new settings like the rings of Saturn, and updates to our old pal Xur are just a few ways that Destiny 2.0 proves deserving of the refreshed interest. If you take the chance to start a new character from base level one, you’ll find at the postmaster a relic that will allow you to jump to level 25 instantly. This lets new players get up to speed quickly, and at least get some good loot, early.

Players will immediately notice the yanking of Peter Dinklage as voice of the ghost, and absolute owning of the role by gaming voice work headliner Nolan North. North gives the ghost a true voice, something in tone close to C3PO, who spouts exposition during cutscenes and more often than in the vanilla Destiny, offering insight into his finding you as a Guardian, the differing factions throughout the system, and much more.

In describing to others, the best way to relate is this is Destiny’s Reaper of Souls.

Destiny also redoes its controversial light system in favor of a more traditional “kill things, get XP” system, which works exceedingly well at making the player feel as though the progression is truly worth it. This coupled with what seems to be a more generous loot drop system equates to an overall loot craze that fuels the likes of Diablo and Borderlands in the best way.

A Tale Worthy of Guardians

Destiny had a story problem, that much is certain, as there wasn’t really much guiding our guardians, and the direction as well as ending of the game left a big feeling of “what did I just do, and why does it matter?” Random decisions like the Awoken race being near extinction, but player selectable not being even so much as mentioned through the course of the standard campaign was a poor choice, but the justification of putting things into Grimoire cards that must be seen on Bungie’s website was even more baffling. Luckily, Taken King rectifies much of the issue with Destiny 1.0 – and gives a story worth telling, and worth playing. While it isn’t going to rectify the errors of the first go around, it goes a long way to maintain interest in the world and lore of the larger Destiny-verse.

Bungie proves once again through the story told in The Taken King that they have the chops to not only write compelling sci-fi, but also construct incredible trappings to house them in. Level design in this expansion is nothing short of extraordinary, and immediately feels familiar, while still new. Ships explode, Saturn is gorgeous, enormous and gaping hallways are encountered, lighting is used expertly, and the entire experience has a handful of moments that force the player to take note. There are true moments in the quests that beg to be experienced, and Bungie deserves at least a little credit for righting the wrongs, or lack of much of anything in the first quest line Destiny players were treated to.

In addition to North’s contributions, the same voices that may be recognized by the discerning ear in the base game, get more lines in the quest line of The Taken King, which tells a story of a father whose son we murdered, and he’s not exactly excited about that. Oryx, father of Crota is building an army of enemies we’ve seen throughout the game but “taking” them, and turning them into mutations of their forms. Enemies not only look different, but behave very differently as well, with Cabal Psions doing a multiplication effect, Cabal Phalanxes being able to shoot powerful beams from their massive shields, and Knights firing new flaming projectiles all over the battlefields. This mix-up makes the Taken a force to never truly underestimate, as engagements can get out of hand quickly.

The result is a blast to play, and to see just what might happen.

Crucible of Champions

The PvP side of Destiny gets an overhaul too, with new maps to fight out the feuds of the factions, players will find some cool new surroundings to throw their hammers, shoot their bows, and strike their lightning. The true star however in Crucible is the new modes; Rift and Mayhem. Both fairly self-explanatory, Rift is a mode not too far removed from Capture the Flag. Teams start on opposing ends of a map, with a central Spark to capture (which has a short charging period in the middle of the map before it can be captured), the player whom captures then becomes the runner and must make their way through the front lines and to the enemy Rift. Slamming the Spark into the Rift causes a point score, and the Spark respawns in the middle after a few seconds. This mode offers just that little bit of deviation from the standard formula that can keep things interesting, and rounds do indeed go quickly as good teams can keep each other at bay fairly easily. Mayhem is just as it sounds, as players can count on absolute anarchy during a game. Mayhem ups the ante by placing in more heavy and special ammo, faster respawns, quicker charge rates for super abilities, and grenades. The result is a blast to play, and to see just what might happen.

The Bottom Line

Destiny: The Taken King takes what was a good foundational game, and enhances nearly everything about it, taking the great gunplay and environments, and adding more of the good, while negating the bad with system overhauls, new modes, and new ways to enjoy Destiny. Players of the old guard will certainly welcome the changes as a new challenge, and coupled with a new raid, they’ll be more than happy. New players have never had a better time to get into a game, with Taken King offering a great rehash of the original campaign and the much better and refined experience of the new campaign. Players can expect tons of side content as well, with the new systems aiding in taking headaches of menus and buried tracking for quests, they'll have a better time in this expansion with friends. PvP players will enjoy new maps and modes as well, bringing even more to the table. Taken King is a true expansion, taking a good game and making it all the greater for all audiences and extending its life for quite some time. While not perfect, and the question remains if Destiny has the staying power to keep the minds and thumbs of players beyond the story content offered, it's a lesson in expansion and new content.

I was provided a digital copy of Destiny: The Taken King Legendary Edition for review on Xbox One