In its latest v6.30 patch, Fortnite added a new weapon to its PvE Save the World mode. It’s named ‘Last Word Revolver’, in a clear nod to a fan-favourite weapon from the original Destiny – which doesn’t yet exist in Destiny 2.
The Last Word was an Exotic hand cannon in Destiny 1 that everyone loved because it was badass. The player would fan the hammer to fire it, giving it the fastest fire rate of all hand cannons, and its perks increased hip-fire damage, encouraging you to whip it out and pretend you were a cowboy.
It was one of many Exotics that didn’t make the cut when Destiny 2 launched. That’s not surprising in itself given the base game’s focus on balance, which culled a lot of the most exciting but powerful Exotics (not least the famous rocket launcher, Gjallarhorn). But after players voiced their displeasure, Bungie has walked back this approach, tweaking most of the vanilla Exotics to make them more powerful, and introducing exciting new ones with the recent Forsaken expansion. Plenty of Destiny 1 throwbacks have been reintroduced since launch, of which Thunderlord, a machine gun, is the latest.
Clearly, a Destiny fan at Fortnite developer Epic Games has got tired of waiting, though. Its description in Fortnite’s latest patch notes says “fire from the hip to shoot with speed, or aim down sights for improved accuracy with this brand new six-shooter,” in a clear nod to the cowboy fantasy it’s designed to offer in Destiny.
Its arrival in Fortnite has not gone unnoticed by Destiny streamers Gigz and TripleWreck. Both are skilled PvP players whose magnificently skilful montages heavily featured The Last Word back when it plus a sniper rifle was the most dominant and exciting Crucible loadout.
This is truly the darkest timeline https://t.co/8QGHE5AtX5
— Ari Smith (@tripleWRECK) November 15, 2018
So will it return in Destiny 2? With Forsaken’s vaguely western theme, it’s a little odd that it hasn’t done so already. Many are hopeful that its time will come with the next DLC, Black Armory, in a couple of weeks. I’d say it’s equally as likely that we’ll have to wait until the second DLC, Joker’s Wild, which will expand on the new Gambit game mode and its organiser, the enigmatic Drifter.
Why? Because The Last Word was the righteous weapon that opposed Thorn, wielded by Dredgen Yor, a Guardian who fell to the Darkness. Drifter is clearly related to this backstory in some way – he makes many references to wielding the Darkness, and the player title awarded by mastering Gambit is ‘Dredgen’. It would make a lot of sense for The Last Word and Thorn to reappear in Drifter’s DLC, perhaps even as part of its story.