Way back when Destiny 2 was first being released I was hesitantly excited about it but then thought about all my experiences of the original Destiny such as completing the first Vault of Glass raid, seeing my first legendary engram coming back as the Hawkmoon exotic and decking out my Titan with Iron Banner gear.
I then went to take games from my 360 collection that I did not need anymore because I had the remastered versions on my PS4 and got Destiny 2 for six dollars and forty cents.
Six dollars and forty cents
Then I played Destiny 2, finished it and played some of the end game and thought "This was not worth six dollars and forty cents." Let me be clear, Destiny 2 was not a broken game to the likes of WoW classic, Cyberpunk or say Fallout 76. In fact the game was expertly crafted together. The locations you would explore, the cut-scenes throughout the game and the gun play was fantastic and it was the same gameplay that I remembered from the first Destiny but slightly better and even more satisfying than before. There were no glitches no clipping through walls or invisible enemies everything ran perfectly. The problem was how much Bungie was asking customers both returning and new for the dollars that they needed to part with for more Destiny.
I had been sitting on this post for a long time to really come to a conclusion as to what the real problem was as to why I could not with all my heart recommend Destiny 2 until I saw a video from one of my favorite Youtuber's: SkillUp.
In his recently uploaded video of "My top 10 Games of 2021" Destiny 2 was on his list and in there he stated "...it has cut vast sways of it's content from the game, content that people paid for, with no compensation whatsoever for that lost content...Destiny 2's pricing model becomes more opaque and confusing as new parts of it are split off and charged for separately..." I of course am cutting out some bits as he discusses the new player experience and the new transmog (or for FF players glamour) system which is incredibly frustrating and down right awful.
With his statement I finally realized what I really wanted to say about why I could not recommend Destiny 2. It was not the game-play of Destiny 2, the way guardians felt less powerful compared to the hordes of enemies you would face in Destiny 2 but it was instead how much money Bungie asks of you to get more out of Destiny 2. At the moment the game is free to play meaning you could go onto your PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox One Series S or X and PC to download and play Destiny 2 with some content on offer free of charge but if you decide you want to experience more of Destiny 2 you are going to have to part ways with a good chunk of your hard earned dollars. Want to play some of the old Destiny 2 seasonal content you missed to unlock that season's armor, weapons and exotics? You HAVE to spend either 70 dollars for the Beyond Light Deluxe Edition or of it's on sale - 40 dollars.
Right now Destiny 2 is having a 30th anniversary edition to celebrate their time as a development studio and Destiny. To get the most out of it like bounties to unlock more gear or XP, to get more out of this anniversary like the Gjallahorn exotic rocket launcher; a fan favorite and famous exotic weapon from the original Destiny!
30 dollars.
You don't get another planet or another mini-campaign it's just a few cosmetic items, some bounties and a recycled weapon all for the price of thirty dollars.
It is with this that I honestly have to say that while Fallout 76 may be one of the worst attempts as a "games as a service" design and have awful micro-transactions Fallout 76 while not free to play does not charge their players a nickel for any of the expansions that they have added into the game.
NOT A NICKEL
You can pay 20 dollars or so for Fallout 76 and go from there without spending a dime and get a ton out of your Fallout 76 experience should you enjoy it.
Destiny 2 is really a good game but the pricing model and monetization that Bungie has established for their game is without a doubt the biggest downside and biggest reason why I cannot and could not recommend Destiny 2 to anyone wanting to come into the game. Even me as someone who has been playing Destiny since the Destiny 1 Alpha test all the way through House of Wolves, Taken King, Rise of Iron, Curse of Osiris and Forsaken who has experienced a well crafted and polished Action RPG first person shooter with MMO like qualities cannot tell you "Yes go out and get it right now"
The problem that needs to be addressed with Destiny 2 is not an in-balance of weapon power in PVE or PVP or technical issues that need to be solved so the game can be playable it is Bungie and their monetization of Destiny 2.
This game has the absolute potential to be regarded as the best first person shooter rpg experience on the market and put every other first person shooter that tries to be like it to shame but Bungie is the one standing in the way of that potential and until the day comes when Bungie finally takes the necessary steps to fairly price their game that they have worked so hard on to bring out of the darkness it found itself on launch day to today and it can finally reach the top of the hill and everyone can see Destiny 2 for the fantastic game it truly is.
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