So Bungie has finally lifted the lid on the long-awaited sequel to 2014’s monster hit, Destiny. It’s fair to say that, at launch, Destiny was a rather divisive title but in the years since Bungie have managed to shape it into a juggernaut still played and obsessed over by an enormous player base worldwide.
With a reveal trailer, a teaser and some leaks to comb through, there’s suddenly a lot more that we know about this sequel. Some of it is concrete, some of it still up in the air.
Nonetheless, here’s what we know about Destiny 2.
The Cabal Are Getting Their Day
One of the things players have always asked for is a Cabal centric raid. All other threats have had one, hell the Hive have had two if you include “Taken”. It seems as though they’ll get their wish as Ghaul, fearsome leader of the Red Legion, invades the Last City, setting up what’ll likely be most of Destiny 2’s vanilla storyline, culminating in a six-man raid to teach Ghaul a lesson for destroying our beloved wares.
Along with Ghaul, the teaser trailer introduces a few new enemy types we’ll likely contend with on Earth and, perhaps, beyond. A large Cabal with two hot glowing almost butcher-knives can be seen reigning down blows on Ikora Rey, he is referred to as a Bruiser unit in a leaked Megabloks set based on the Tower invasion seen in the trailer. Beyond actual infantry units, there’s also an armoured dog-like creature that Cayde-6 is seen tangling with, which is an interesting development as Destiny hasn’t really introduced any kind of wildlife before, except the Iron Lords’ wolves of course.
We Know The Dates
Bungie has been kind enough to publish their road map, letting us know that Destiny 2 is set for release on September 8, while the first gameplay reveal is going to be streamed on May 18.
Somewhere between those dates, though, will be the game’s beta (read about early access here), which is heavily rumoured to be in June. Bungie has stated that they’re taking the sequel on the road to cons, so there’s every chance it’ll feature during Sony’s E3 conference, given that they’ve inked another exclusivity deal with Bungie.
My fingers are crossed that the release of the beta might tie into the conference as they drop one of those great “and you can download it right now” reveals, just like they did with Resident Evil 7 last year.
It’s A Sequel, Not A Reboot
There was speculation that, due to nothing carrying over into the sequel, Bungie might just hit the reset button on the game’s canon and start afresh in the sequel. To the relief of lore nerds everywhere, it appears that this isn’t the case.
We already know that the Vanguard survive the Tower attack, with Cayde-6 featuring heavily in the promotional material so far. It’s safe to say these three are going to play a bigger role in the story going forward, as you help them take back the Last City. It’ll be great to see them out and about too, no longer confined to their briefing room.
Nolan North Is Back
One of the things keen-eyed viewers noticed in the reveal trailer was the absence of Ghosts, with many believing them to be either dead or captive given Bungie’s synopsis states that Ghaul “has stripped the city’s Guardians of their power”.
Perhaps given the state of the Traveler, as seen in the trailers, the Ghosts have had to return to it to begin a healing process. I’m sure we’ll find out plenty more in the lead-up to release.
Nolan North has already confirmed his involvement, so one would assume Ghost will return. Though he only confirms he is involved, he doesn’t confirm his role, so perhaps he’s being sneaky and is voicing a new character entirely. I think it’s a safer bet that our Ghosts will return, though.
Expansions Are In The Works
This is another hot point as it appears the first two expansions for Destiny 2 are going to delve into two of the most mysterious and fascinating points of interest for lore enthusiasts.
It looks as though for Expansion I, we might be finally meeting Osiris himself. Players are no doubt familiar with the Trials of Osiris we’re saddled with by Brother Vance, but little is known about Osiris himself. We know nothing of what led to his exile, what led to him starting a cult on Mercury or what is meant when he came “too close” to understanding the Vex. So hopefully, as we quest to rebuild the Last City, we happen upon this old Warlock.
And perhaps even juicier for Expansion II, we’re going to see a more fleshed out story for Rasputin, the Warmind built to defend Earth whose motivations are very unclear. I expected Rasputin to feature in Rise of Iron and was sorely disappointed when he was only simply referred to in passing, so to get more about it will be great.
There’ll Be Loot
We’ve already covered the collector’s editions at length, you can find all of that good stuff here.
Weapon Manufacturers Still On Board
While it’s established that we’re set to lose our beloved treasure trove of guns for Destiny 2, it appears that the Gunsmith’s connections with manufacturers like Omolon and Suros might still be alive and kicking given our cover art Guardians are sporting weapons of these makes.
Let’s hope we’re not limited to the three makes again, but if we are, at least we know already that these things can pack a punch if the roll is right.
