Published on: Jun 8, 2015 @ 21:09
According to Kotaku, a reliable & anonymous source has unveiled some fresh details about Destiny’s upcoming expansion: The Taken King
We’ll learn more about The Taken King at E3, coming up real soon, and PlanetDestiny will be there live to report all the latest!
You’ll find spoilers below!
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Release Date
According to the leak, the release date will be on September 15th and at an increased price of $40. We’ll most likely be able to pre-order it after the E3 reveal.
9/15/15 is likely the same day that Xbox owners will have access to the current PS-exclusives as well. There’s no word yet on whether or not there will be additional exclusives with TTK.
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New Subclasses
With the caveat that this information is subject to change, it appears that there will be 3 new subclasses in this upcoming expansion.
Hunters will finally have access to the Void element, in the form of a “Gravity Bow” – a perfect Super for the new subclass. The new Titan Super appears to feature a flaming hammer, and the Warlock Super looks like an a deadly Arc storm that cements the Wizard of Destiny’s mastery of the elements.
[…] an electrical storm for Warlocks (arc); a gravity bow for Hunters (void); and a flaming hammer for Titans (solar).
We don’t yet have any footage of how these Supers will work or preform in combat, but it’s possible that we’ll see a demonstration at E3.
With very little to go on, it will be interesting to see if the new subclasses have a playstyle focus that amounts to more than just killing enemies. Defender Titans and Bladedancer Hunters have utility outside of simple damage, and additional RPG roles such as a heal-friendly Cleric, a DoT-applying Mage would go a long way toward diversifying strategy for new content as Destiny moves forward.
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Raid
As predicted, The Taken King will be larger and more expansive than TDB or HoW. There will be more to do, and yes, there will be a raid!
Oryx himself is projected to be the raid boss, with the eponymous “Taken” serving as his new class of minions. He obviously wants to avenge the death of his son, Crota, and will use his “Taken” army to help do so.
It’s unknown whether this army is just a different faction of the Hive or a completely new enemy altogether.
The army could be comprised of all different types of enemies that have been “taken” control of, maybe with enhanced abilities?
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What Can We Expect?
Although it hasn’t been announced, it’s safe to say we can expect new weapons and armor, new Exotics, a continuation of Destiny’s story, and a whole host of goodies.
Among new PvP maps, Strikes, and what we’ve come to expect, we may just see some brand new features as well.
The community wish list is not an indication of improvements coming with TTK, but hopefully Bungie will at least seriously consider a few of them.
The following are among the most requested features for Destiny:
- Transmogrification
- Private Crucible Matches
- Gun Skins
- Guardian Facial Hair
- Vault Sorting Options
- Crucible Map Voting
- Expanding Faction Interaction
- Aim Assist Toggle Option
- Rotating Stock on Tower Vendors
- Dismantle Consumable Items
- Additional Matchmaking Options
- Weapon Rebalancing
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Cost vs Value
All of this (and more) can be yours for the price of…$40. Yep, The Taken King is sporting an early price tag twice that of Destiny’s most recent expansions – $5 more than the Expansion Pass’s initial cost.
We’re not sure how to feel about this number yet. It’s evident that this will be the biggest infusion of content into Destiny yet, but it’s hard to say whether or not it will be worth it before seeing more. Destiny has had an excellent run thus far, growing as a game in ways we couldn’t have predicted at launch, but $40 is already causing many to balk at the leak.
It’s not that we won’t get a good value, necessarily. It’s very probable that the actual amount of content will be at least twice that of the House of Wolves or Crota’s End. In those terms, if you were pleased to pay for the chance to continue your Guardian’s adventure, The Taken King should appeal to you.
However, $40 is close to the price of many newer games, and Destiny’s liberal use of the word “expansion” until this point is now biting it in the butt. The connotation “expansion” carries is one of adding on to an already substantial product. $40 is near the cost of that initial product, and with The Dark Below and Crota’s End having been marketed as expansions, it’s hard to not initially react to $40 with hesitancy. After all, Destiny is a franchise that was envisioned as spanning a decade.
Okay, so we’ll have a lot to think about when it comes to deciding what’s worth it or not. But with that out of the way, we’re beyond excited to see what Bungie has in store for us at E3. We’ll be sure to keep you updated on everything we know as soon as we can tell you.
What do you think of this leak? Does $40 seem like something you’d be willing to part with for the chance to play what might be the best expansion Destiny will ever offer? Let us know what you’re thinking in the comments.