The hype train that preceded Destiny was real. It was big, it was loud and it was a non-stop ride all the way up to the game’s release on September 9, 2014. As it turns out, it was also justified, as Bungie’s latest creation has without a doubt been one of the year’s best. While the game did take some criticism for its single-player campaign, the multiplayer and co-op aspects have been nothing shy of amazing, with the recently released DLC, The Dark Below, only adding more great content.
It’s doubtful we were alone, but we were lost when we first stepped into Destiny. Concepts such as factions, elemental damage and exotic engrams were all foreign, but that didn’t stop us from diving into the game headfirst. A few weeks later and we were thoroughly hooked, logging on to complete bounties and level up our characters for the weekly strikes and forthcoming raids. We even jumped head first into the loot cave (Rest in Peace), slaughtering endless waves of foes to feed our addiction of rare and legendary goods.
More than three months after the release of Destiny, we finally have a solid grasp on most of the game’s concepts, and a firm understanding of what makes this first-person shooter so special. It’s a combination of the social aspect, as well as the never-ending journey to level up your Guardian. There’s just something awesome about seeing your character go from wet noodle to battle tested and hardened veteran.
It also doesn’t hurt that Destiny does a masterful job of challenging you with an always updated list of strikes, daily missions and insanely difficult raids, all full of enemies that are equal parts fun and terrifying. For example, the Crota’s End raid has been out for over two weeks now, and we’re still working our way to a level that we feel would be reasonable to attempt it, let alone beat it. Even when we do, there’s no guarantee that we’ll get the gear we’re hoping for, and although some people find this maddening, it’s a genius way to make sure that we play it over and over again.
For those who get tired of that PvE (player versus environment) grind, there’s always the Crucible, the game’s PvP (player versus player) mode that will give gamers a chance to earn rewards that will carry over to the co-op side of things. The loot is quite random, but it’s a fun way to test your skills against other Guardians, and in the case of the Iron Banner events, see how your gear stacks up as well.
Destiny offers players an insane amount of content, all wrapped up in an experience that has something for just about everybody. If you’ve yet to take the plunge and make an appearance at the Tower, now is definitely the time to do so. We’ll even help you along with our complete guide to The Dark Below DLC, as well as the locations to all 20 gold chests that can be found throughout the game.
Now if only we could talk Xur into working longer hours.
