“Destiny 2” is a game that’s been in a constant state of flux since its release in 2017. After a lackluster year of content, players were eagerly awaiting the “Lightfall” expansion to drop and reinvigorate the stale affair of the game. Unfortunately for players, “Lightfall” mostly offers a series of disappointments leaving a lot of people questioning the state of the game and its future.
The story begins with a large battle in space between the allies of the solar system and the forces of The Witness, the central villain responsible for the fall of humanity and countless other civilizations. From there, players will travel to the neon-soaked streets of Neomuna on the planet Neptune. From there, the story is mired in annoying characters, vague MacGuffins and a lack of explanation for most of the things the player will encounter.
The main issue with the story is the lack of explanation for its most important aspects like the Veil, which is somehow the key to the villains’ plans. The reason why it’s so disappointing is that “Destiny” has gotten much better with its storytelling in the past couple of years with more interesting characters and the feeling that players do actually matters. This feels like a filler chapter before the actual climax of the story.
The city of Neomuna is another thing that had a lot of promise yet fails to live up to it. The glowing city that’s been kept secret for centuries, it’s a setting unlike anything “Destiny” has done in the past, but it feels far too familiar due to its emptiness and constant use of recycled assets. Even the new weapons tied to Neomuna are recycled from older models.
The saving grace of the story is being able to wield the new power of Strand that uses green strings of psychic energy. This new subclass has a lot of great crowd-control options and allows for faster movement and a more active playstyle.
As fun as Strand, is it isn’t implemented in the actual campaign missions all that well. Players are given a limited version of these powers and are constantly switching between them and their usual subclasses in a way that makes it harder to learn how to use Strand.
“Shadowkeep” was another disappointing expansion, but it came during a time when people were willing to give the developer, Bungie, the benefit of the doubt. Now, after years of promises and the company being acquired by Sony, people expect more, and “Lightfall” doesn’t come close to delivering.
“Destiny” is a game that needed a shakeup and new content that feels fresh and exciting. This feels like more of the same and the result of different teams with conflicting ideas trying to make all their ingredients fit in the same pot. Now, “Destiny” is a game that has a burnt-out player base and is almost impossible to recommend to new people.
The shame of it is that throughout “Lightfall” and its new content, one can see glimmers of hope and small reasons to keep playing until the next release. Bungie has been in the position before, though, and it’s hard to keep giving them passes after so many stumbles and unfulfilled promises. “Lightfall” comes away with two and a half stars out of five for being a below-average addition to a game that deserves and needs better.
