So we’ve finally gotten a look behind the curtain for Destiny 2. Bungie revealed quite a lot at their Twitch reveal on Thursday and answered many of the questions that’ve been burning in our minds since the game was announced. Initially it was exciting to see the changes made to the Destiny formula and the new locations Bungie has crafted for players to visit. However, that excitement passed as was soon replaced by apprehension. My main thought after the stream ended: “This reminds me an awful lot of how the original Destiny launched.”

(video from YouTube channel: destinygame)

As a fan of Destiny, I really didn’t have any problems with what was announced. I like that game features a brand new story with an actual point. I approve of having new powers, weapon types, and sub-classes to play around with. I appreciate that our guardians will have new worlds to fight on, and I applaud all of the quality of life changes that are being included. Really, much of what they announced sounds great when taken by themselves. It’s when they’re all taken as a whole that I start seeing some potential problems.

For starters, lets take a closer look at what we currently know about the available activities. For PvE we know that there will be Patrols, Strikes, Nightfall Strikes, and Raids. Patrols are going to feature more elements of exploration and discovery than before, with hidden bosses and treasure chests to find. That sounds good and all, but is there going to actually be all that much to find, or is it going to be just another spot to farm for patrol missions? The Strikes will be…new. We know this because Bungie went out of its way to say so several times during the presentation. This should have just been a given, right? As for what’s new about them…not that much I guess. Then there’s the Raid. Destiny 2 is going to have a Raid available around launch. That’s everything they’ve told us about it. So we’ve got patrols that at least sound more fun than their Destiny counterparts, new strikes, and one new raid. It’s great that it’s all new, but it’s nothing we haven’t done in Destiny before. Alright, so what about the new planets?

Destiny 2 players will get to visit four(-ish) new worlds this time around. As with the activities, I don’t have an issue with these new worlds in and of themselves. Players will get to visit Titan, Saturn’s largest moon featuring an ocean of liquid methane covering its entire surface. They’ll get to check out Io, Jupiter’s very volcanically active moon. The game will also feature “Nessus” a planetoid following a “visiting orbit” and featuring all the wonders of the Vex. Finally players will return to Earth and explore the “European Dead Zone”, a much more forested and lively area than Old Russia and the Cosmodrome. Honestly, I’m rather psyched to see what most of these places look like. My only issue is that, like Destiny, it’ll just be four locations to visit at launch.

All of this sounds great. In fact, it sounds even better when coupled with the additions to the Crucible and the quality of life improvements they showcased at the reveal. The thing is though, I was expecting a proper sequel and I’m not sure if Destiny 2 qualifies as such. Sequels are supposed to use their predecessors as base to start from and then refine and add to it. Destiny 2 definitely seems like it will deliver on the refining part, but what about the adding? Based on what’s been shown, there’s not all that much that’s actually being added in terms of content. Players will still only have four worlds to visit. They’ll still only have Patrols, Strikes, Raids, or Crucible to choose from (after completing the story). The ships still appear to function as nothing more than loading screens, and they haven’t said anything about whether or not there will be a point to playing beyond reaching the level/gear cap. I appreciate the changes the game is making, but I had expected a proper sequel to Destiny to actually be a bigger game with actual new stuff to do; stuff that couldn’t be done in the first game. Right now though, it just seems more like Destiny 1.5 than Destiny 2. Hopefully they’ll announce more in the coming months that will change my mind, but for now I’m still not sold on it.

Are you psyched for Destiny 2? Will you be jumping on board Day 1 or will you wait for reviews and/or expansions first?