People are Fickle

Destiny has had a weird launch.

Here's a brief list of observations:

• Reviews were held back because of arbitrary reasons about the press needing to play with the public (not representative of the final game's social features in my opinion).
• Review scores were then relatively low.
• Bungie 'no get no bonus' because Metacritic.com lied to the shareholders by displaying average scores.
• Public reception has been fervent but also relatively negative. Mostly in regard to drop rates...and its dumb half shrug of a story...and the lack of content that comes from having a dumb half shrug of a story...and the lack of in-game social options...and the grinding...did I mention its story is stupid...it's basically a $60 teaser for the expansion packs.
• No one ended up caring about the amount of p's it was displayed at.
• Magic caves were removed from existence and then reborn again like a bad case of fungus (not sexual).
• The list goes on.

To make a long story short, it's been rocky in a way that isn't normal for big budget AAA games.

...To make a short story long...It is relatively well made and beautifully rendered. It is an always-online game that actually worked on day one (for most people). If you dig deep enough and don't mind replaying the same content ad nauseam you seem to be able to wring a lot of hours out of it. The combat is impeccable. People that play a lot of the game still, rightfully, have a lot of problems with it. I really like it but can't seem to stop finding things I dislike. There's so much to not like! The game is downright obtuse! The flaws are glaring! GET A FUCKING CODEX FOR THIS GRIMOIRE BULLSHIT!

At the end of the day, or perhaps just the end of this particular week, I am starting to think that it isn't even about it being good or bad. It's about people paying attention to it. It's about how it was described/misunderstood as this expansive thing that would last 10 years and it then ended up being beatable in one day. Essentially giving their audience a bad case of blue balls (not sexual) when they discover that the vision they appeared to be pitching for this game was actually dealing more with the franchise.

Destiny, the game that is out in stores now, is a bald- faced lie compared to what it was being marketed as and it is still proving to be extremely successful. People don't usually like that. Gamers don't usually like that. But it can still be successful because enough people have been informed of its existence. The hype was massive. The budget was huge. It didn't deliver the good when it was actually released. It's Waterworld.

I agree that a lot of people have been played for suckers by the marketing machine, but to be honest I was going to play it anyway. I'm too much of a fan of the medium not to throw down for the most expensive game ever made. I had to know.

I remember liking Waterworld. I also think Destiny is painfully dull and have told everyone I know not to play it if they value their time. Go figure.

It's pretty amazing that with all its massive glaring issues that it still manages to be a really great game.

A deeply flawed really fantastic game.

So much opportunity there for them to make it better, you just have to really hope they capitalize on it.

You leave Waterworld alone! :( Waterworld is awesome.

Meh, it's pretty much the game I was expecting, warts and all. The only real hype I had for it was that it was a Bungie game and that it was co-op with RPG elements, I didn't really care about all of the other bullshit being said about it. It's a shame they misrepresented it, particularly in the early going but I kind of don't really care (I felt the same way about Watch_Dogs, didn't really care that it was overhyped - though in that case I simply didn't enjoy the released product).

It's a flawed game, but I love actually playing it.

I still don't have any interest in Destiny. It still looks boring so not for me. Same thing I've always felt about it. Although, I will admit, I can't tell what your point was. You reitterated a lot that you don't like Destiny but I think you're still playing it. So... I guess you like it. It sounds like a guilty pleasure or something.

Also, I liked Waterworld. I liked The Postman even more.

Yep.

I think waterworld is a great comparison actually, i liked that movie but it was pretty damn bad. But i think i'm hitting that wall with destiny now, i want to play it more but have no reason to. All the legendary gear seems the same now, the lack of match making on weekly's makes it impossible for me to do them when i have the time, and the classes dont' really seem all that different enough to start a new character or finish leveling this subclass.

It's pretty clear to me, as someone who doesn't own the game, that with the amount of constant chatter about this game that despite whatever faults it has, it's most clearly a thing and Bungie has created a massive hit. Though I guess one look at the sales numbers would be enough to draw that particular conclusion. But I fully expect the next Destiny to sell very well as well. People just give a shit too much for it not to.

I was one of those "suckered by the marketing" people. And you're spot on. The marketing lied. There's no real way around it. Jeff said it best on the Bombcast we he mentioned how at preview events and even the Sony E3 conference (2013) that they talked about how "my buddy sees my cool gun and wants to know where I got it" when in fact that's impossible because the guns all look pretty much the same AND they don't have these above and beyond stats that make them more than just the single number damage comparison (at least for the pre-level 20 guns). They talked about so many aspects that then just didn't deliver.

And on top of that, even if they hadn't marketed it up beyond what it was, the game still falls short for the "most expensive game ever made". If that's true, then this game is a pile of hot garbage. If they spent more money on this than any other game ever, then Activision should reconsider its relationship with Bungie going forward. There are games (including FPS) that cost way less to make, had a shorter dev time, and are much better. If Michael Bay said his next movie was the most expensive movie ever produced, and then you saw it and it was 30 minutes long and the action scenes were made using claymation that obviously wasn't just a stylistic choice, it would be an outrage in the film community. And this is somehow the most expensive game ever? But it only includes 4 planets/areas and <10 hours of story? And you have to go buy expansions in the next 10-12 months to make it bigger and better?

Come on. That's got to be a joke. I started laughing even while typing that.

I never watched The Postman, and I wasn't really a fan of Waterworld, but more power to you on that.

"So this is what it feels like to be marketed" -- I thought to myself after finishing the campaign.

Once I learned to embrace the game as a grindfest, I actually started enjoying my time with it a lot more. It's easy to jump in and do a couple mindless bounties, all the while expecting to get absolutely nothing out of it other than the enjoyment of playing a solid FPS... cause given my usual luck I'll never find anything of value anyways, so why have any expectations.

Maybe I'll get back into it more heavily once/if they fix the loot and give me actually achievable short-term goals that don't require extreme luck or 20 hours of grinding. Diablo 3 managed to evolve and come back around despite a very rough start (original inferno was just a slap in the face), so I have hope Bungie can do the same. I expect (or at least hope) there will be making several quality-of-life changes in the coming months that would make the loot grind more appealing to people like me.

Besides, I bought the digital guardian edition, so I might as well at least check in whenever the two DLC packs I already bought are released... =/

hmmmm, I think that Destiny can be talked about in different angles. What I find interesting you can calmly talk to someone about your complaints about the game and your not getting death threats about it. You can admit you like it and it's flawed, it's not that the audience is Fickle.... the audience has matured because they can relate with everyone else's opinion.

I can't agree with the assumption that Destiny is (effectively) a teaser for the expansion packs. I wouldn't be suprised if those contained little to nothing of the main storyline, whatever they think that is. The Stranger I guess.

I think they planned Destiny as 3 games that had a story arc contained within, first part being mysterious with lots of loose ends. In my opinion what we actually got in terms of story was just a handful of loose ends that gave no hint of having come from or leading to anywhere.

I just realized how brilliant the 'light level' is. In the next game (or expansion) they could create a new world where the 'light doesn't work' or something and basically everyone is at level 20 again, only to unlock the new light level mechanism at level 30.

Wasn't it already known what the 2 expansions would bring? Literally a handful new missions, some new strikes and crucible maps. Hardly something that players won't beat in another couple of hours probably.

I bought it to because I have to know. I'm gonna sell it for Smash Bros. anyway.

"Bald-faced lie"

That said, I really don't know what they lied about in the marketing. The game I got is exactly the game I thought I was going to get. Maybe I'm just not watching the same commercials that everyone else is? Maybe by watching more trailers I'd somehow become less informed? I dunno. Sucks people are disappointed, but what were they expecting?

A storyline. Enough content for the game to feel epic. Competent matchmaking. A loot system that isn't openly antagonistic towards the players. Bosses that are mechanically interesting rather than just having...so much health, just unbelievable amounts of health.

I've found that too. This game hasn't had the normal defense force that most games have. But the point remains that most people are almost exclusively discussing all of the flaws of the game and only mentioning positives in passing. People have seemed to be able to discuss it very openly but a majority of the discussion is negative. Even though the game has a lot of great stuff in it. We're not being fickle about each others opinions (hooray!) but rather fickle about the game in general.

maybe that's a matter of what gets attention on blogs? I was chatting up a few coworkers and they can't seem to stop talking about how much they love the game. But I do feel Defense Forces never understand if you love something you can see it's flaws and understand them, most of those types of fans just fly off the handle over the slightest little thing. I'm reminded I tried commenting on Bioshock Infinit's enemies have a bee line combat design and the guy just said to me "it's art you can't judge art" or "if your so smart why not you make something better."

does this mean tom petty will be showing up in a future patch?

With the price of PS4 games in the UK still sitting in that launch window premium, I'm much more hesitant to pick up a game day of release. Between the E3 showing and the beta I was looking forward to trying out Destiny, but after watching the reception, I'm thinking I'll save my money until it drops in price.

In terms of the game feeling like a bald-faced lie, I can see that, but I feel myself coming to the conclusion that I should have reached a while ago in that previews of games are often misleading. The development of games is convoluted and unpredictable. Less and less am I able to trust what a game like be like until I can see people playing the real thing.

Didnt everyone play the beta, watch the 2 hr stream i mean what was it everyone thought they were holding back? I cancelled my pre order once i saw there was no cover, no destructibility and it just seemed, like Titanfall, just another FTP game. It will be a better game in a year when it launches with all the DLC and patches, balance fixes on the PC.

Destiny is mediocre at best.

OP is spot on. In fact, I literally cannot believe how anyone can defend this game as anything but, or be content with what it has to offer. Aside from the core gameplay and graphics, Destiny is sorely lacking in every other area. I also bought into the hype and marketing, and I was very excited for it. Unfortunately it turned out to be one of the most disappointing games I've ever played, especially in terms of marketing versus hype.

Also, Waterworld is a better movie than Destiny is a game.

Game is alright, got 30 hours out of it and moved on with my life.

Feels like there's about as much storyline in Destiny in any of the Halo games I've played. Don't remember them ever talking about epic content, just more real estate than older games which is definitely the case. Did they really talk about matchmaking in the marketing other than being pretty upfront about their being none for Raids and stuff? I haven't done PvP so I don't know if it's broken or whatever but that seems like a really weird thing to make promises about prerelease. Same goes for the loot system. Sucks that engram rarity is not an indicator of item rarity, but I can't remember any preview coverage where they talked about how many layers of RNG their loot system has. I feel like as soon as they started letting people know what Destiny actually was, it was very clear that it was an MMO-ish FPS and the bosses have 100% lived up to that expectation. Pre-raid they're just burlier and hit harder and maybe have a tiny quirk like shooting the spider tank in the legs then having to get in close to shoot the exposed weak point and at raid-level they have more unique mechanics and require a high degree of coordination to take down.

I'm not saying Destiny is perfect or even very good, but most of the things people are complaining about are expectations they set for the game apropos of nothing.

@spraynardtatum: It's unusual, but Watch Dogs had a similarly lukewarm reception too. The big difference seems to be that Destiny has a way big defense force online. Both of them were supposed to be great, but came out "just okay", yet still sold a lot.