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There are three pieces of downloadable content (DLC) that have been released for Bungie's first-person shooter video game Destiny. Each package of downloadable content adds new missions, new locales to visit, and new items for the player to make use of. The third, The Taken King has the largest effect on the game, as it changed much of the core gameplay. Upon the release of the third expansion, retailers issued Destiny: The Taken King Legendary Edition, which includes all DLC up to and including The Taken King. In December 2015, Destiny shifted to an event-based model, featuring periodical limited-time events.

Although the downloadable content packs are available for all consoles that Destiny was released for, the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 versions feature timed-exclusive content. The timed-exclusive content that was available at the launch of Destiny became available for the Xbox 360 and Xbox One when The Taken King launched. The Taken King also has timed-exclusive PlayStation content that will become available for the Xbox platforms in fall 2016.

Overview

Prior to the official release of Destiny in September 2014, Bungie declared that a major component of the game would be a continuous release of new content. Bungie Director of Production Jonty Barnes said: "We're going to continuously update the game from now until the end of time. That's always going to be part of the philosophy of Destiny. We always wanted to build a new universe but keep building upon it, rather than to do a complete and utter restart periodically."[1] By the time of Destiny's launch, two planned packs of downloadable content (DLC) had been officially announced: The Dark Below and House of Wolves.[2][3] From the launch of Destiny, players could purchase the Destiny Expansion Pass, which included the first two expansions at a discounted price versus buying them separately.[4] Players also received an exclusive sparrow (EV-30 Tumbler) if they purchased the Expansion Pass or The Dark Below by January 15, 2015.[5] At E3 2015, Bungie officially announced a new expansion called The Taken King.[6]

In the weeks proceeding from the release of Destiny, players were reporting areas that could be accessed by various glitches or secret accesses.[7] These areas have been described as appearing “half-baked”, and were noted to often be devoid of items or NPCs.[8] In an interview with Eurogamer, on the claims that these were on-disc DLC, Bungie president Harold Ryan replied that the content were incomplete resources intended to reduce download requirements for future DLC.[9]

According to reports, Bungie does not plan to release additional paid expansions for Destiny as a follow-up to The Taken King. Senior designer Derek Carroll explained that the studio wanted to shift towards an "event-based model" with "surprises" for players, available to all owners of The Taken King at no additional charge, as opposed to a timed roadmap, as had previously been speculated. Kotaku had reported in October 2015 that two planned paid expansions had been shelved in favor of the development of a full sequel to Destiny for release in 2016—reports that have not yet been confirmed by Bungie.[10][11] Marketing director Eric Osborne further clarified its plans for "Year Two", stating that it would not consist solely of time-limited events as had been implied by others, but new "events, activities, content, and features", as well as an event planned for early 2016 that will be "far larger than anything you’ve seen since the release of The Taken King".[12]

The Dark Below

Destiny's first DLC pack, The Dark Below, was released on December 9, 2014. The expansion added new content centering on the Hive race and their deity Crota, Son of Oryx, who had been referenced in the original game. Three story missions, a strike, and a raid were added. New bounties, equipment, and Crucible maps were also added, as well as two Crucible modes, Inferno and Doubles. Maximum weapon attack damage was increased to 331 for new legendary and exotic weapons, and the Light level cap was increased to 32. Although previous legendary items could not be upgraded to the new stats, exotic items earned prior to the expansion's release could be upgraded through Xûr, however, players lost all previously earned perks, requiring them to relevel their exotics.[13][14][15] An additional exotic weapon ("The 4th Horseman" shotgun) and another new strike ("The Undying Mind") were also added and were time-limited exclusives for PlayStation platforms until September 2015.[16][17] A hard mode for Crota's End was added on January 21, 2015.[18]

Plot

Eris Morn, a former Guardian and the only surviving member of a team who tried to previously take on Crota, has come out of hiding and returned to the Tower to warn of Crota's return. Her first quest tasks the Guardian with killing a Hive Knight on Earth called the Fist of Crota. The Guardian then sets out to stop the Hive from overtaking Rasputin, who are lead by a powerful Hive Wizard called Omnigul, the Will of Crota. After destroying a massive ogre called the Might of Crota, Omnigul flees. Eris then has the Guardian travel to the Moon to stop the Hive from resurrecting Crota. This the Guardian does and they destroy a crystal that contained part of Crota's soul.

After returning to the Tower, Eris assigns the Guardian with two more quests. The first of these has the Guardian to fill an urn called the Urn of Sacrifice with the ashes of defeated Hive on Earth, including a powerful Hive Knight called Urzok, the Hated. The Guardian then takes it to the Moon to collect Hive eyes for Eris. The second quest has the Guardian destroy the remaining servants of Crota on Earth called the Heart of Crota, the Hand of Crota, and the Eyes of Crota. This leads to the strike, "The Will of Crota", where the Guardian hunts down and eliminates Omnigul.

Despite the Guardian's best efforts, including destroying part of Crota's soul, they were not able to prevent Crota's resurrection. The expansion culminates with the raid, "Crota's End", where a team of Guardians travel deep within the caverns of the Moon to take on Crota directly.

In the original game, there is a story mission called "The Sword of Crota" where the Guardian is tasked with destroying the weapon. When The Taken King released, it added a new questing system to the game and this mission became the first mission of The Dark Below quest line.

House of Wolves

House of Wolves was released on May 19, 2015; the expansion added new content centering on the Fallen race, as players attempt to thwart a campaign by Skolas, Kell of Kells, to unite the Fallen race under his rule.[19] The expansion added six story missions, new bounties, new weapons and gear, a new special weapon class (sidearm), the strike "The Shadow Thief", and new Crucible maps (including one, "Timekeeper", that was a time-limited exclusive for PlayStation platforms until September 2015[20]). A revamped upgrading system was introduced: players could reforge new legendary weapons (except House of Judgment and Trials of Osiris weapons) to try and achieve better perks. Upon obtaining Etheric Light and Exotic Shards, players could "ascend" all legendary and exotic items to the highest levels possible as of the expansion: Light level cap 34 and 365 damage for weapons. Because of the backlash of the first expansion, players did not lose any perks on their items when upgrading to the new stats.[21] Two new multiplayer modes were also added: the Prison of Elders (a PvE arena) and Trials of Osiris (PvP game type).[19][17][22][23]

Prison of Elders is a cooperative mode, in which a team of three players fights against waves of enemies with varying modifiers, culminating with a final boss. The level 28 version includes matchmaking, but the higher levels do not. While the level 28, 32, and 34 difficulty boss changes weekly, the level 35 mode is always "Skolas's Revenge".[17] The Trials of Osiris is a weekly, time-limited PvP event held between Fridays and Tuesdays, in which a fireteam of three members attempts to win as many matches as possible. Matches use the Crucible mode "Elimination". A fireteam can continue participating until they amass 9 victories or 3 losses. Participating in Trials of Osiris requires the purchase of a "Trials Passage" card from Brother Vance at the Vestian Outpost; items that can add a win to the card or indemnify a loss can also be bought with "Passage Coins" that are earned through any PvP mode. Reaching varying numbers of wins on the score card allows the player to earn rewards—for example, reaching five earns a featured armor piece, and reaching seven earns a featured weapon. Going undefeated with nine wins unlocks The Lighthouse, an exclusive social space on Mercury with rewards. If a team amasses three losses, they can try again by buying a new Trials Passage.[24][19]

Plot

Originally a Captain of the House of Wolves who eventually became its Kell (a leader of a Fallen House), Skolas had attempted to bring down the Reef after several of his lieutenants were captured and imprisoned in the Prison of Elders. Variks, a Fallen Vandel of the House of Judgment, betrayed Skolas, becoming a loyal follower of the Queen of the Reef. Due to this betrayal, Skolas himself was captured and imprisoned by Queen Mara Sov, who was then declared the new Kell of Wolves, despite not being a Fallen herself. The former Wolves' Kell was then offered as a gift to an ancient organization called the Nine, but was freed by Xûr, an Agent of the Nine. Skolas then lead an uprising against the Reef and freed many of his lieutenants from the prison and rallied the Wolves. Declaring himself the Kell of Kells, he began a campaign to unite all Fallen Houses under his rule; the point where the in-game House of Wolves story begins.

To try and recruit the Guardian to combat the rising threat, Queen Mara Sov orders that the Reef's Vestian Outpost (new social space and hub for the expansion's content) be opened to them. Located in the asteroid belt, the Outpost is the residence of Petra Venj and Variks the Loyal, who serve as guides for the Guardian. The Guardian is sent to Venus to stop Skolas from gaining support from the House of Winter, but is unsuccessful. On Earth, Skolas tries to gain support from the House of Devils and House of Kings, but the Guardian interferes and is this time successful at keeping them from joining Skolas. The Wolves return to Venus and break into the Vault of Glass to steal the Vex's technology to further Skolas' goals, however, Skolas and the Wolves are eventually overpowered by the Guardian. Skolas is captured and returned to the Prison of Elders.

The level 35 mode of the Prison of Elders PvE arena is called "Skolas's Revenge" where in the final round, a team of Guardians face Skolas again to execute him.

In the original game, there is a story mission called "Scourge of Winter" where the Guardian is tasked with killing Draksis, the House of Winter's Kell. When The Taken King released, it added a new questing system to the game and this mission became the first mission of the House of Wolves quest line.

The Taken King

Main article: Destiny: The Taken King

The third expansion, The Taken King, was released on September 15, 2015, marking the end of "Year One" of Destiny.[6] The expansion focuses on Oryx, The Taken King and father of Crota, as he leads a new race of enemy, the Taken, to avenge his son's death.[6] Players have access to a new PvE area, the Dreadnaught, Oryx's massive ship situated in the rings of Saturn (with its own Patrol mode), as well as playable missions on Mars' moon Phobos (previously only available in PvP), and the raid, "King's Fall" (the hard version raised the highest obtainable light level to 320). A new public activity called Court of Oryx is accessed during the Dreadnaught's Patrol mode with random bosses and three levels of difficulty. A new heavy weapon was introduced, a sword, which has new mechanics from the swords that can be used during certain Hive missions. Three new strikes were added and three Year One strikes were revised to include the Taken race in addition to the other enemies.[25] Seven new Crucible maps were added, in addition to three new PvP modes, "Rift", "Mayhem", and a new version of Control called "Zone Control".[26][27][28] New sub-classes were added for all three classes; the Void-based "Nightstalker" for Hunter, the Arc-based "Stormcaller" for Warlock, and the Solar-based "Sunbreaker" for Titan.[29]

Like the previous expansions, The Taken King has time-limited exclusives for PlayStation platforms, which will last until late-2016.[17] Two new retail versions of Destiny, the "Legendary Edition" and "Collector's Edition", were released alongside The Taken King: both include a copy of the game, all "Year One" DLC, and The Taken King. A Digital Collector's Edition is also available. Year One players received commemorative items when purchasing The Taken King.[26][30] A new PS4 bundle is also available, which includes a limited edition white 500GB PS4 with Destiny artwork on the face of the console, the Legendary Edition of Destiny: The Taken King, and all bonus content from the Legendary and Digital Collector's Editions.[31] Players who purchase The Taken King receive an item called Spark of Light, which boosts one new character to level 25, the minimum level needed to play The Taken King content.[32]

Limited-time events

Destiny has featured a number of limited-time events, usually lasting two to three weeks each. Although Year One only featured one limited-time event, Bungie announced in December 2015 that for Year Two, they will be focusing on doing more of these types of events instead of doing a big DLC pack every few months, like The Dark Below and House of Wolves.[33] Shortly after the launch of Destiny, a two-week long event began on September 23, 2014 called "Queen's Wrath" with Petra Venj as its main NPC. This event featured bounties and multiple challenges on existing missions for players to complete to obtain exclusive items.[34] A two-week long Halloween-themed event began on October 26, 2015 called "Festival of the Lost" where players could complete quest lines to earn decorative masks for their Guardians. Eva Levante was the main NPC for this event. The masks were of different NPCs and main bosses in the game. During the event, players had to wear certain masks to complete parts of the quests (e.g., complete a heroic strike while wearing The Speaker mask). Masks were rewarded randomly and every player received a mask at the start of the event. Rare masks went away after the event but Legendary ones were kept.[35] A new Crucible map, Cathedral of Dusk, was also released during this event. It was available to all players during the event, but is now only accessible by players who own The Taken King.[36]

On December 8, 2015, a new three-week long event became available called the "Sparrow Racing League" (SRL) with Amanda Holliday as its main NPC. In this event, players raced against each other on their sparrows, which Bungie described as a "six-player, free-for-all death race through enemy territory."[37] Two race tracks were made specifically for this event: one on Mars and the other on Venus. Maps also featured obstacles, such as enemies who would shoot at players. Through this event, players could earn new sparrows and gear. Helmets and class items could drop at up to 320 light and could be infused. Other gear only had perks to help while racing. New quest lines and bounties were added for the event. The Eververse Trading Company added new emotes, and featured toolkits for new sparrows, horns for the sparrows, and a record book which gave players special SRL objectives; completing those tasks resulted in exclusive gear like an emblem and an armor shader. There was also a PlayStation exclusive quest for the event. The event, however, was only available to players who owned The Taken King.[38] According to Bungie, sparrow racing was an experiment, saying that if players liked it, they will build upon it and make it better, but if they did not like it, they will either get feedback and improve it or they may not bring it back at all.[37]

A Valentine's Day-themed event called "Crimson Days" commenced on February 9, 2016 and will last for one week. Lord Shaxx is the main NPC of the event with a new quest line and bounties for players. Senior designer Leif Johansen said the reason for its short length is because they "[do not] want [the event] to overstay its welcome and drift away from its 'small and fun' goal".[39] The event features a new Crucible mode called Crimson Doubles, which is a two-versus-two mode featuring new gameplay mechanics with "a special twist".[40] Crimson Doubles is similar to Elimination and is a best-of-five rounds. The "twist" is a buff called "Broken Heart": when a teammate dies, the player will get maxed-out stats, giving them a better chance to revive their ally. A teammate's kills count toward the player's own bounties as well. Players also have the chance to earn exclusive gear.[40] New emotes were also be added to the Eververse Trading Company.[39]

References

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  2. ^ Liebi, Matt (May 28, 2015). "Destiny's next expansion to be shown at E3". GameZone. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
  3. ^ Tach, Dave (July 7, 2014). "Destiny's two collector's editions include access to two expansions and more". Polygon. Vox Media. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  4. ^ Liebl, Matt (July 7, 2014). "Destiny Expansion Pass, aka Season Pass, detailed". Game Zone. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
  5. ^ Cavalli, Earnest (November 20, 2014). "Buy Destiny expansion, get a Sparrow that lets you do tricks". Engadget. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
  6. ^ a b c Sarkar, Samit (June 15, 2015). "Destiny's next expansion is The Taken King, launching Sept. 15". Polygon. Vox Media. Retrieved June 16, 2015.
  7. ^ Matulef, Jeffrey (October 10, 2014). "Destiny player finds another under construction DLC area". Eurogamer. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
  8. ^ Schreier, Jason (October 30, 2014). "Bungie (Sorta) Explains Why Some Of Destiny's DLC Is On The Disc". Retrieved July 10, 2015.
  9. ^ Yin-Poole, Wesley (October 29, 2014). "Destiny's first expansion The Dark Below takes aim at story criticism". Eurogamer. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
  10. ^ "Sources: Destiny's DLC Plan Is Changing Big-Time". Kotaku. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  11. ^ "Bungie talks Destiny: The Taken King's event-focused future". Eurogamer. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
  12. ^ "Bungie reassures Destiny's frustrated community about the game's future". Polygon. Vox Media. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
  13. ^ "The Dark Below Review: No Light Above". Polygon. Vox Media. Retrieved April 10, 2015.
  14. ^ Suszek, Mike (November 24, 2014). "New trailer for Destiny's The Dark Below glances at gameplay". Joystiq. AOL. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  15. ^ Cowan, Danny (November 26, 2014). "Destiny's Dark Below trailer runs through the goodies". Joystiq. AOL. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  16. ^ Conditt, Jessica (December 2, 2014). "Destiny's PlayStation-exclusive Dark Below content detailed". Joystiq. AOL. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  17. ^ a b c d Yin-Poole, Wesley (June 16, 2015). "Destiny's divisive PlayStation-exclusive content deal continues with The Taken King". Eurogamer. Retrieved June 17, 2015.
  18. ^ de Matos, Xav (January 15, 2015). "Destiny 'Crota's End' hard mode coming Jan. 21". Joystiq. AOL. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  19. ^ a b c "Destiny: House of Wolves review: Guardian of hope". Polygon. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  20. ^ Makuch, Eddie (April 29, 2015). "Destiny Gets More PlayStation-Exclusive Content With House of Wolves". GameSpot. Retrieved February 9, 2016.
  21. ^ "House of Wolves will let guardians make their old gear fresh again". Digital Trends. Retrieved June 22, 2015.
  22. ^ "Destiny's House of Wolves expansion arrives May 19". Polygon. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
  23. ^ "Destiny's next expansion, House of Wolves, won't include a new raid". Polygon. Retrieved April 14, 2015.
  24. ^ "Destiny: Trials of Osiris is the new PvP end game". VG24/7. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  25. ^ Newhouse, Alex (August 10, 2015). "Destiny Dev Explains Why The Taken King Is Worth $40". GameSpot. Retrieved August 10, 2015.
  26. ^ a b "Destiny: The Taken King adds a new Destination and two PvP modes". VG 24/7. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  27. ^ "5 significant, fresh features in Destiny's The Taken King expansion". GamesRadar. Retrieved June 22, 2015.
  28. ^ Newhouse, Alex (August 5, 2015). "Destiny: The Taken King Lets You Try Out Guns, Adds Multiplayer Mercy Rule". GameSpot. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  29. ^ Miller, Matt (June 15, 2015). "Destiny's New Subclasses Explained". Game Informer. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
  30. ^ "Destiny: The Taken King Collector's Edition exclusive to GameStop". IGN. Retrieved June 20, 2015.
  31. ^ Koller, John (July 30, 2015). "Limited Edition Destiny: The Taken King PS4 Bundle Pre-orders Open Today". PlayStation.Blog. Sony Computer Entertainment America. Retrieved July 30, 2015.
  32. ^ Legarie, Destin (August 19, 2015). "27 Major Destiny Changes In The Taken King". IGN. Retrieved August 21, 2015.
  33. ^ Prell, Sam (December 8, 2015). "Bungie says Destiny will focus on events like Sparrow Racing League over expansions". Games Radar. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  34. ^ Saed, Sherif (September 23, 2014). "Destiny's Queen's Wrath event is now live – bounty and vendor details". VG247. Retrieved June 22, 2015.
  35. ^ Liebl, Matt (October 26, 2015). "Destiny celebrates Halloween with 'Festival of the Lost'". Game Zone. Retrieved October 29, 2015.
  36. ^ "Halloween comes to Destiny in a delightfully mischievous way". Polygon. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
  37. ^ a b "PlayStation Experience 2015: Destiny: The Taken King – We'll Do It Live! ViDoc | PS4, PS3". YouTube. PlayStation. December 5, 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  38. ^ Sarkar, Samit (December 7, 2015). "Here's how Destiny's new Sparrow racing mode works". Polygon. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  39. ^ a b Sarkar, Samit (January 29, 2016). "Bungie details Destiny's Crimson Days event, including 'Hotline Bling' emote". Polygon. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  40. ^ a b Albert, Weston (January 21, 2016). "Next Destiny Event Is Crimson Days for Valentine's Day". Gamerant. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
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