Destiny is everything I hoped - and more

Sitting on the surface of the moon, I use the brief moment of peace to take in my surroundings. The lack of atmosphere gives a perfect view of the Earth, as well as the light from other galaxies several million of miles away. As I wait for my fireteam to reach my location, I check my armor and weapon loadout and prepare for a journey deep into the Hellmouth where untold numbers of Hive monstrosities await. This is Destiny and it’s everything I’ve hope it would be.

Destiny is the newest creation from Bungie, the studio which created the Halo franchise. Destiny shares many similarities with the Halo series but goes far beyond anything it ever presented. More than just a first-person shooter with a narrative and multiplayer, Destiny represents the closest a console game has come yet to a Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) game. These elements aren’t as apparent during the early hours of Destiny but as you reach the higher levels and end game elements, the MMO aspects become more apparent.

But before I get into all that, let’s start at the beginning.

Destiny tells the story of the future of humanity. A mysterious being called The Traveler one day appears on Earth and brings with it a new golden age of information and technology that allows humanity to reach the stars and build colonies throughout the galaxy. But the Traveler had many enemies that followed it and eventually, humanity was pushed back to a single city on Earth, situated underneath the Traveler and protected by it. As a Guardian, it is your task to seek out lost information and technology that will allow humanity to thrive again while pushing back the enemies that threaten the human race.

Beginning Destiny, you get to pick between three classes (Titan, Hunter and Warlock) which each have numerous customization options. Unlike most FPS games, you actually get to admire your handiwork, since there is a hub world in Destiny called the Tower which you view in third person.

The Tower is where you organize your inventory, buy new gear, take bounties and other activities. But outside of the Tower, there are several ways to experience Destiny.

Since Destiny is always online, the easiest way to describe its elements are classifying them as “Players vs Enemies” (PvE) or “Players vs Players” (PvP). Story missions, Strikes and Patrol missions are all what would be considered PvE as you and other Guardians venture into the hostile galaxy to retake what humanity has lost. The PvP aspect of Destiny is represented by The Crucible, which is competitive multiplayer as most people know it, featuring game types such as team deathmatch and domination.

Story missions obviously advance the story of Destiny and many help you unlock new aspects of the game, like space travel and heavy weapons. Strikes, on the other hand, are dedicated battles for your fireteam which generally have a few phases of increasing difficulty. Patrols are the most free form, allowing you time to explore the environments of Destiny, search for loot crates and take smaller missions which often earn you experience points as well as Vanguard reputation.

However, as mentioned above, Destiny isn’t your typical FPS and in fact has many similarities to MMOs, which become most apparent once you reach the initial level cap of 20.

When I first began playing Desinty, I heard that the level cap was set at 20, which seemed incredibly low. After a few sessions with friends, I had already reached level 8 and had only just begun completing missions on the Moon, with story missions on Venus and Mars still locked. Barely into the story and yet halfway to the level cap? I figured there had to be something I wasn’t understanding – and I was right.

When you reach level 20, you stop gaining experience toward overall levels. You still gain normal XP, which can go toward your skills and specialization, but your level is capped at 20. Now, I haven’t experienced this myself but I’ve been reading online about how to continue leveling past 20 and I’m going to try and relay it here.

Completing Strikes, Patrol missions and bounties earns you Vanguard points/reputation, which is a crucial step in the process. You can also complete Crucible bounties or earn Crucible reputation by playing that mode. Earning Vanguard/Crucible rank 2 is the first step in the process of leveling past 20.

Once you reach level 20, regular XP stops counting toward your level but it is possible to continue leveling up your character with Light Points. Light Points are attributes contained within rare armor pieces and weaponry (shaded blue or purple). Accruing enough Light points will then determine your character’s level past 20.

It’s important to know these elements first as you need Vanguard/Crucible rank 2 to buy your first piece of rare armor from the Tower. Also, to buy rare weaponry, you’ll need Vanguard/Crucible rank 3.

I keep making the distinction between Vanguard and Crucible for a reason. In the Tower, once you hit 20, you can get gear (gear being armor or weapons) from your class Vanguard (in the back room) or one of the three factions (Dead Orbit, Future War Cult or the New Monarchy – located in the wings of the Tower). Vanguard rep is earned in PvE actions (mainly from the Strike Playlist, which opens when you’ve reached 20 [or completed the story, I’m not entirely sure]) while faction rep is earned via PvP in the Crucible. In addition to reputation, Strikes and Crucible will also earn you Marks, which are the currency to buy gear. It seems that Marks are capped at 200 a week, though you can earn as much reputation and normal XP as you’d like.

TheReddit post where I gleaned much of this info makes the suggestion of focusing on PvE or PvP to obtain your first piece of rare gear. Also, how you play should determine which area you focus on. If you have a group of friends you play with often, PvE might be the way to go at first, otherwise PvP in the Crucible might be your best shot at earning rare gear.

So how is this like an MMO, you ask? Not so much because of the fact that you see other Guardians going about their business in PvE modes, but because of the grinding, which tasks you with playing certain modes (Strikes, Crucible) over and over until you’ve accumulated enough of a certain currency (reputation and marks) to purchase items to lead you to the next level. It’s also similar in that you and several players ban together to take on various raids capped off by enormously powerful boss characters.

(As I said, I haven’t reach 20 yet myself and if any of this info is wrong, don’t hesitate to check out that Reddit post and let me know)

In just its first day on the shelves, Destiny shipped more than $500 million, enough to make it the most successful new videogame franchise launch of all-time. Also, Destiny is the highest selling day-one digital release on consoles ever. This record is rather new in the grand scheme of gaming and one that will probably be outpaced in the coming years but for now, it’s a title that Destiny owns.

Obviously, Bungie is going to continue supporting Destiny heavily and fans can be on the lookout for several additions to the game in coming months in the form of updates and DLC.

Right now, there is a unique gametype available in the Crucible call Salvage, a 3v3 objective game where players collect relics for their team while trying to disrupt the enemy. This mode is online until Sunday, Sept. 14. Also, later this month, the Crucible will feature a mode called Combined Arms, which is said to be a vehicle-heavy game type. In October, the Crucible will feature the Iron Banner mode, where PvP equalizers are turned off and players compete with the full power of their armor and weapons.

As for PvE, an event called “Queen’s Wrath” is scheduled for September and though details are few right now, it could be anything from a new story mission to a new Strike. Also in September, a Level 26 raid called Vault of Glass will go online. Check out this Destructoid article for more info.

As for Destiny DLC, two packs have been announced so far – The Dark Below and House of Wolves. The Dark Below is slated to be released in December and will take placeon the moon, specifically in the Hive stronghold known as the Hellmouth. So far, almost no info is known about House of Wolves. I think these two DLC packs are also exclusive to PlayStation until at least Fall 2015, so it would be a good guess that House of Wolves would be out sometime before then.

After I’ve spent more time with Destiny (much, much more time) I’ll be back to give a more complete picture of my impressions with the game as well as any changes in my attitude toward it – as in, will I still be enamored or will all the grinding crush my soul? I couldn’t begin to guess right now, but I’m going to love finding out.