Unrestricted Class Access
There’s two components to this point: The first being that when we got hands on time with the beta, only half of the skill nodes were available. I’m eager to get my hands on Voidwalker’s lifesteal build, and the Sentinel being able to throw multiple shields.
Secondly, third subclasses… what’s the deal with them? I’m hopeful we’ll see Nightstalker, Sunbreaker, and Stormcaller again!
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New Enemies
We’ve gotten a close look at the revamped Cabal in Destiny 2. We’ve seen the new units added, like the Incendior, Gladiator, and War Beast. We’ve also seen the new updates to existing Cabal from the original game, like Psions now being able to snipe and the new method of shielding used by the Phalanx.
While the Vex that we faced in the beta remained mostly the same as in D1, there’s still a chance Bungie is holding back if they have added any new units to the Vex as well. This also extends to the Fallen and Hive. And what about the Taken and SIVA? Lots of possibilities.
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‘Red War’ Campaign
We already know that we get our butts kicked at the start of the game. Ghaul drains our Light, destroys the Tower, and sends us packing to humbly rebuild in the EDZ. We know that the Vanguard ends up scattered, with each prominent member having their own story tied to one of the other planets. We also know Bungie promises that Destiny 2 will have a much more cinematic, focused narrative this time around.
I’m very much looking forward to seeing where they take this plot. The inclusion of adventures and world quests available after the main campaign to add more to the overall story of Destiny 2 is a huge step in the right direction as well.
To read even more about why we’re excited for D2’s story, click here.
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The Raid
The raids in D1 were the pinnacle of PvE content. I’ll never forget the first time descending into the Vault of Glass, racing through the darkness in Crota’s End, falling to my death a few too many times in the King’s Fall jumping puzzles, or the first time seeing Aksis in Wrath of the Machines.
It felt like with each new raid release, the magic of Destiny was magnified. We have no information about what D2’s raid will be like, but one thing is for sure: it’s going to be intense. With the addition of Guided Games this time around, more players than ever before will get to experience raiding, which can only be a good thing.
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New Gear
Bungie really stepped their game up as far as armor set design goes late in the life cycle of Destiny. When the Age of Triumph update dropped and we got our hands on updated raid gear with matching ornaments, many people immediately had high hopes for what the gear in D2 would end up looking like.
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New Locations
The European Dead Zone, Titan, Io, and Nessus are where we’ll be spending our time. Each location looks absolutely fantastic, and EDZ is said to be huge.
After seeing Nessus and some of the activities available while in Patrol mode, we’ll surely have plenty of reasons to go back and spend more time really getting to know each of these planets.
Bungie has said that with their new game engine, they are more easily able to add content into Destiny 2, and at a much faster pace. Could this extend to an entire new planet with a later expansion?
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Iron Banner & Trials (of the Nine?)
Now that PvP has shifted over to 4v4 and Bungie seems to be placing a greater emphasis on competitive play in Destiny 2, I’m excited to see what changes will be coming in regards to these two events.We know that a ‘Trials-like’ mode will be arriving within’s D2’s launch window, probably a few weeks after September 6th.
And just like with the raids, Guided Games will be available to make sure that more players will be able to participate. Unfortunately, like the raid, we don’t know how much Trials will change going forward.
“[…] we’ve got some cool stuff planned for Trials that we’re going to unveil later this year, so we don’t want to give away too much.”
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Improvements from the Beta
Damage done in PvE, weapon balancing, super recharge rates; they’re all things that Bungie can easily tune between now and the full release.
And the good news is most of these things have already been addressed. As explained in a recent weekly update, sweeping changes have been made to PvE balance, including buffing grenade damage, Kinetic damage, improvements to the heavy ammo economy, and best of all, increased super recharge rates across the board.
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Secrets & Surprises
Bungie has mentioned multiple times that they are purposely withholding a ton of information about Destiny 2 so that there’s still some sense of excitement and mystery when we finally get our hands on the game.
What sort of things do you think they could be? The third subclasses introduced back in TTK? New enemy races? There’s tons of possibilities, and one agonizing waiting period to get through before we find out the answers!