Destiny 2 will follow a similar DLC model to the original, with two expansions due to release in the winter and then the spring after its launch in September this year. All of this is official except the timeline, which supposedly comes from leaked instructions to Gamestop store managers.
It’s confirmed for PC and details are starting to trickle out – here’s everything we know about Destiny 2 so far.
The leaks were posted to Imgur and Reddit, with Redditor noblesteeda saying “my friend works at Gamestop and sent me this.” Bungie’s letter to Gamestop is here but says nothing particularly interesting. Their instructions to store managers, however, include the following paragraph:
“The Destiny 2 expansion pass includes reservations for both Expansion I and Expansion II, which will be released in winter 2017 and spring 2018, respectively. The expansions offer brand new story missions, cooperative activities, competitive multiplayer, and a wealth of new weapons, armour, and gear.”
It was confirmed last week that Destiny 2 would follow a similar expansion model as the original, when the announcement of the Collectors’ Edition confirmed two expansions. A few days later, the expansion pass was officially listed on the Microsoft store, with icons in its artwork revealing the focus of each expansion: Osiris and Rasputin. These are two major figures in Destiny lore that players of the original have been keen to meet for some time now.
Expansion I is marked with the eye of Osiris, a rogue Warlock (the most scholarly Guardian class) who questioned the authority of the Speaker, the mysterious figure that represents the Traveller (the big white orb that uplifted humanity and grants Guardians their power). It’s hinted that he has a different view of the Darkness, the cosmic force you’re meant to be fighting, but he’s yet to appear in the game.
Rasputin is similarly under-explored. He (or perhaps ‘it’) was one of the many AIs that organised and operated humanity’s defence systems, but it’s hinted that he’s become much more. Again, the lore around him is some of the most tantalising in the Destiny universe, so it’s frustrating that he has yet to be the focus of his own storyline.
Exciting as it is that we’ll get to explore all of this, the content model of the original Destiny was one of its many criticised aspects. All content in the expansions except for raids was available as soon as they were released, with raids and their hard modes taking no longer than a month to unlock. Live events struggled to fill the gaps, such that the original game struggled with chronic content droughts. Since they’re apparently not cribbing from World of Warcraft for the sequel, here’s hoping Bungie have planned better support this time round.