Bungie has spent the week doing deep dives into its philosophy for the future of Destiny and everything that’s gone right and wrong with Destiny 2 – and, of course, plenty of concrete details one what to expect on the Shadowkeep release date. Today’s blog is no exception, and gives us some notable info on what to expect from the Crucible and the game’s “evolving world.”
Destiny 2’s PvP playlists are getting significantly reworked. Quickplay will be replaced by Classic Mix, which includes Control, Clash, and Supremacy. A new 6v6 Control playlist will get added, as Bungie wants “to have a playlist that signals to new players that this is where to start,” and the studio feels Control is the right mode for that.
Competitive will now be 3v3 Survival, and there will now be a solo queue for Survival, so you can still earn Glory even while you’re playing alone. The matchmaking system is also getting a broad rework, and perhaps the most notable effect is that skill value will factor into your gains and losses of Glory.
Game director Luke Smith also mentions an “evolving world” for Destiny 2. “There’s an aspirational vision for what ‘evolving’ could mean for Destiny. Someday, Destiny could become a dynamic world, where the world changes each season. We want playing Destiny to feel like you’re playing in a game world with true momentum, a universe that is going somewhere.”
In practical terms, Season 8 will see the situation on the Moon evolve over time. “Over the course of the season, parts of the game will change before the situation culminates in an event that will ultimate resolve it, and its content will be exhausted.” That’ll then feed into the start of the next season, which will follow a similar path.
“This differs from last year’s Annual Pass, which permanently added activities to the game,” Smith says. You’ll see more limited-time events and content come into the game – and leave it – as a result. The developers plan to let you have further chances at collecting seasonal gear and weapons, but you won’t necessarily always have access to all the activities.