Destiny 2 is in the midst of its yearly Festival of the Lost event, acting as a Halloween celebration for the game. Festivities run through November 19, adding event-specific ?content and rewards for its duration. While Festival of the Lost hasn't dramatically changed since it swapped the Haunted Forest for Haun??ted Lost Sectors four years ago, 2024's event does alter a few things with an aim to make the Halloween celebration more accessible.

Festival of the Lost is an event that dates back to the original Destiny. The Festival has seen its share of changes over the years, but the general gameplay loop still revolves around collecting Candy as a currency. Currently, Candy is used in tandem with Eerie Engrams to purchase rewards from the event c?oordinator, Eva Levante. That said, some of the best rewards featured throughout Festival of the Lost can only be earned by participating in the event. And even better rewards are available if Guardians are willing to shell out for some microtransactions.

How to start Festival of the Lost

Festival of the Lost has no content or entry requirements; the event is free to all Destiny 2 players. Eva Levante has taken up residence at the center of The Tower,? and a visit ?to her is all needed to start getting spooky in-game. Eva will task players with an event introductory Quest called "Classic Carving." 

Classic Carving will teach players what Festival of the Lost offers and how to participate. By completing the Quest, Guardians will earn a Masquerader's helmet, and that's required to earn Candy. New Masquerader's helms can be obtained via Eva or Haunted Lost Sectors. While the default look is Master Rahool, players ca??n change the appearance to any other mask earned across previous Festival of the Lost events.

The Classic Carving Quest will eventually instruct players t??o en??ter a Haunted Lost Sector. These are the main activity offerings for Festival of the Lost, and an Expert difficulty becomes available after completing Classic Carving. At the end of the Questline, Eva will reward players with a decent roll of the Arcane Embrace shotgun, the newest Festival of the Lost weapon.

Festival of the Lost Event Card

The Festival of the? Lost Event Card is a collection of Triumph-like challenges with unique rewards. Players can optionally pay to upgrade the Event Card, unlocking additional themed cosmetics. The Event Card is accessible from the Quests tab in the Director or directly via Eva Levante. Event Card challen??ges aren't required to earn the Festival of the Lost Title, Ghost Writer, but some objectives can overlap.

The rewards earned through Event Card challenges are one side to the earnable loot for Festival of the Lost, with weapons, Festival masks, Sparrows, and vari??ous currencies available alongside the optional upgraded Event Card rewards. 

Haunted Lost Sectors

Haunted Lost Sectors aren't new to Festival of the Lost, but the process of completing them has changed a bit. In years past, players would need to complete other activities to earn Spectral Pages, which would then get convert??ed into Manifested Pages after a successful Haunted Lost Sector. Now, Spectral Pages are out of the picture, and Guardians can earn Manifested Pages directly by completing Haunted Lost Sectors or other activities while wearing their Masquerader's helm.

The number of Manifested Pages earned in a Haunted Lost Sector depends on the group's performance. The activity places green summoning circles throughout the L?ost Sector. When players stand in the circles long enough, a Headless One miniboss spawns and must be eliminated. A Lost Sector boss will appear after 10 Headless Ones are slain or after enough time has passed. It shields itself at 50% health?, and players must defeat more Headless Ones that drop shield-destroying pumpkin bombs. If players finish the Haunted Lost Sector with more than 10 Headless Ones eliminated, they'll receive the maximum amount of Manifested Pages.

Manifested Pages are spent in The Tower at the Book of the Forgotten. This is a collection of short little lore entries ??with spooky undertones. There are four Volumes of Tales of the Forgotten. The older entries only cost one Manifested Page, while the latest Volume four can run up to nine Pages per entry.

Guardians can earn high-stat rolls of the Masq?uerader's helm from running Haunted Lost Sectors, and Expert Haunted Lost Sectors will reward a Masquerader's helm with a better chance at favorable distribution of the high-stat roll. Of course, the regular Haunted Lost Sectors have matchmaking, while the Expert version does not. As mentioned before, players cannot attempt an Expert Haunted Lost Sector until after they've completed the Classic Carving Quest.? This similarly applies to alternate characters.

Festival of the Lost: Eva's loot

??Eva Levante has a few new treats for 2024's Festival of the Lost. In addition to the usual Grab Bags and Festival of the Lost weapons, targeted Exotic armor makes a return from 2023's event. Alongside traditional Exotics, each Class' Exotic Class item? is also available from Eva throughout 2024's Festival of the Lost.

How to earn the Festival of the Lost Memento

Like last year, earning a Festival of the Lost Memento has a bit of a hidden process around it. Players must complete three secret objectives to gain the Twilight Triumph, reward??ing the Memento when it's claimed from the Triumph me?nu. Each task involves a Festival of the Lost mask unlocked from 2024's Event Card; some are more involved than others. That said, once you know what to do, each objective can be completed quickly. The Twilight Triumph tasks are as follows:

1. Complete the Hocus Focusing challenge on the Event Card and equip the rewarded Tower Staff Mask Ornament. Talk to Eva at The Tower; she'll offer The Mystery of the Missing Bags Quest. Talk to Saint-14 to resolve the Quest.
2. Complete the Heads Will Roll challenge on the Event Card and equip the rewarded Cursed Thrall Mask Ornament. With the mask equipped, Guardians must get 100 kills with explosive weapons.
3. Complete the Candy Corner challenge on the Event Card and equip the rewarded Finalized Ghost Mask Ornament. Guardians must get 50 sword kills in Expert Haunted Lost Sectors with the mask equipped.

Once all three objectives are complete, players can claim the secret Triumph and earn a guaranteed Festival of the Lost Memento. The Triumph will also reward the Spectral Carapace Emblem. After that one, pla??yers can continue to earn additional Festival of the Lost Mementos by focusing Eerie Engrams with Eva Levante.

Eververse Festival of the Lost cosmetics

The Festival of the Lost Event Card and Eva rewards represent the unique event swag that can be earned through participation, but the Eververse Store has plenty of additional options for cold, hard cash. Guardians can purchase additional mask Ornaments, Emotes, Finishers, Ghost flair, and even full Halloween costume transmogs. These offerings are available for Silver (real money) for the most part, though each year's Halloween costume is ?also available ?for Bright Dust.

The post Destiny 2: Festival of the Lost 2024 event guide appeared first on Destructoid.

There's a hidden Quest tucked away into Destiny 2's Festival of the Lost Halloween event this year. And while it's nothing that will reward players with a secret Exo?tic mission or a new weapon, it's a cute little romp that adds a little extra flavor to the four-year-old celebration. However, this Quest isn't outwardly advertised within the game. It takes a little curiosity, or the righ??t know-how, to start the task, and the same goes for completing it.

The Festival of the Lost is Destiny 2's yearly Halloween celebration. While the event has had its share of surprises in the past, nowadays, variety comes in the form of new costume cosmetics each year. But this year, there's a b??it of a surprise during Festival of the Lost. It's nothing as big as the Xenophage ??Exotic that was introduced during a Festival of the Lost past, but it's still a good bit of fun to get Guardians into the spirit of the season.

How to begin The Mystery of the Missing Bags

Before players can start the hidden Quest, The Mystery of the Missing Bags, there are a few things that players must complete?? first. The most important prerequisite is for players to complete the introductory Festival of the Lost Quest from Eva Le?vante: Classic Carving. This simple Quest will teach players the ins and outs of the event, gifting them a Masquerader's Hood Halloween mask and introducing the Haunted Lost Sectors.

Once Classic Carving is complete, players will gain access to the Festival of the Lost event card. It conta??ins a set of event-specific Triumphs that contain a variety of rewards. The next thing Guardians need to do before they can obtain The Mystery of the Missing Bags Quest is complete the Hocus Focusing Triumph on the event card. All that's required is for pl??ayers to head to Eva and focus an Eerie Engram. It doesn't matter what the Engram is focused into, so long as its spent. Once the Triumph is complete, it will reward players with the Tower Staff Mask Ornament.

The Ornament can be used to modify the appearance of the Masquerader's Hood, and hilariously enough, it makes the mask look a bit like Jotaro Kujo from Jo Jo's Bizarre Adventure. With the Ornament set and the Masquerader's Hood equipped, Guardians can pay a vis??it to Eva Levante in The? Tower for a surprise bit of dialogue and the start of The Mystery of the Missing Bags Quest.

How to complete The Mystery of the Missing Bags

There isn't much to this hidden Festival of the Lost Quest. All that's required of players is a visit to the nearby Saint-14 in The Tower's Hangar. Saint will have his&nb??sp;own bit of dialogue to add an extra bit of flair to the quick ordeal, and then he'll hand over a reward. Guardians ??will receive a Confiscated Grab Bag from the Exo. The rewards from the Grab Bag seem to range from just Glimmer to gear, with no apparent predictability.

While the quick little mask Quest can be completed just as quickly as it can be started, it's worth noting that there are other mask Ornaments available through the Festival of the Lost event card. It very well may be that this won't be the last time during the spooky season wher??e Guardians don a mask to uncover some hidden surprises.

The post Destiny 2: How to start?? and complete The Mystery of the Missing Bags duri?ng Festival of the Lost appeared first on Destructoid.

If Destiny 2 players have ever felt like the odds were stacked against them when trying to earn a specific weapon roll, they might not be too far from the truth. The Destiny 2 community has come together to amass data that seems to point towards something going on with how Perks are distributed on weapons. While Bungie has responded and debunked previous questions about individual Perk weighting, it seems?? the studio found something worth looking into after recent player data suggested it's Perk combinations ?that might be weighted, not individual Perks themselves.

When players earn a weapon in Destiny 2, most of the time, that weapon drops with a random combination of Perks and weapon attachments. While crafting weapons allows players to sidestep lady luck, not every weapon can be Shaped. That's the case with the new arsenal of weapons from the Vesper's Host Dungeon, and that's where players st??arted paying closer att?ention to what rolls were dropping on weapons.

The conspiracy theory holds water

Some players started to notice that it felt impossible to get the considered god roll of Envious Arsenal and Bait and Switch on the new VS Chill Inhibitor grenade launcher from Vesper's Host. As the weapons from the Dungeon aren't craftable, it's just a matter of running the encounters until the players are graced with the roll. But even then, the VS Chill Inhibitor god roll seemed exceedingly rare, so, the community ?brought the matter to Bungie's attention.

Bungie, having heard and responded to various drop rate worries over the years, responded as it normally does. In a seemingly now-removed post on X, Bungie noted, "Hey all, we had a conv??ersation with our Sandbox folks this morning about th?is. There is no perk weighting active for any legendary weapon perks in Destiny 2."

Of course, the Destiny 2 community being what it is, some players didn't take Bungie's answer as definitive. Amassing data from across the community, players like @T1Vendetta and @kneewoah ran extensive testing to research weapon Perk distribution. According to the data, Bungie was technically correct. There is no apparent favoritism f??or any given Perks on weapons. That said, with two Perks on weapons, there seems to be something going on with how the Perks are paired.

Imagine the available pool of Perks on a weapon as two side-by-side columns of options in a fixed arrangement. While the first Perk (the left column) is truly random, after that Perk is chosen, the game has preferences on what comes next. Again, imagining those two columns, weapons prefer a set of Perks that are "close" to each other. The column perspective is important because, as tools that pull directly from the Destiny 2 API like light.gg show, that's how the game itself organizes and ??references these Perks.

Bungie acknowledges something is wrong

With all of the data pointing to Perk pairing not working as Bungie thought it did, and with the conversation and discourse spilling out online, the studio had to take another look under the game's hood. On October 24, Bungie posted on X, saying, "While we have confirmed that there is no intentional perk weighting on weapons within our content setup, we are now investigating a potential issue within our code for how? RNG perks are generated." Bungie went on to thank the community for pursui?ng the suspected issue and amassing the quantity of data that it had.

The next day, Bungie was back on social media with news surroun?ding the investigation. "After investigation, we can confirm an issue has been found in our code where some random perk combinations are harder to earn per legendary weapon perk set," Bungie noted. "In some cases, desirable perk combinations are a bit easier to earn as well. While we inspected our content and confirmed each perk is weighted equally, an issue in perk pool RNG is the culprit here. Our team has quickly identified a potential solution to the issue, and we are rapidly working to validate the fix."

As of October 28, Bungie communicated its progress once again on X, explaining that it is planning to address the issue during an update on November 5. The studio again thanked the community for the part it played in identifying the issue, and promised some kind of a greater community thank you in the future. Right now, however, Bungie made a new Emblem available for all players. Players can redeem the free goodie at Bungie's website by using the code VHT-6A7-3MM.

A perfect storm

Players might not have realized something was off if there hadn't been a perfect storm of a situation that created the awareness. First off, the VS Chill Inhibitor, with its god roll, is one of the best weapons currently in the game, especially with the new Artifact Mods for Episode: Revenant. This created initial demand f?or the weapon?, which got players hunting for it.

Often, the weapons players want are craftable, so the chase for a weapon extends only as long as it takes players to earn enough red-bordered "blueprint" weapons. Without crafting as an option for VS Chill Inhibitor, players became?? painfully aware of how diffi??cult it was to earn the weapon with the desired roll. 

The final piece in the puzzle is that the god roll for VS Chill Inhibitor is actually one of the rolls that are least likely to drop. Suppose this wasn't the case and that the two Perks in question were "positioned" closer together in Destiny 2's API. In that event, there's a pretty good chance the desired weapon roll would've ??been easy enough to obtain that the community's suspicion would have likely never been raised. If that were the case, who knows how long this issue would have remained in the game undete??cted.

It was only through happenstance that all of these conditions coalesced when they did. However, it's a good thing that it did, as the scenario allowed the community to help Bungie identify and fix something fundamentally flawed on the backend of Destiny 2. While it's not every day that these kinds of conspiracy theories actually hold water, in this case, it's clear Destiny ?players aren't afraid of a little extra work to prove their p??oint.

The post A Destiny 2 conspiracy theory proves somethin??g is up with weapon ?rolls appeared first on Destructoid.

For Honor is set to receive a crossover event for Halloween, bringing the Destiny universe into the game. At the same time, Destiny 2 players will soon partake in the yearly Festival of the Lost, the in-game Halloween celebration that has remained nearly identical since 2021. And yet, there's been no confirmation as to whether Destiny 2 will see any new content to benefit from the For Honor collab. It's a stark reminder of how Destiny presents itself from the outside looking in.

Bungie is no stranger to partnering with other studios to crossover Destiny to other franchises. This has happened several times in the past, with The Witcher, Mass Effect, Ghostbusters, and even Dungeons & Dragons being recent examples. In most cases, new content enters Destiny 2 to coincide with the collaboration, but this time, Bungie has been oddly quiet about whether this would be the case with this most recent partnership -- especially considering the extent of Destiny's presence in For Honor's Halloween event.

New Guardians rise For Honor

For Halloween, For Honor is getting a Destiny-themed event called Light of the Guardians. It will run from October 24 until November 14, adding enemies based on the Scorn from Destiny in a new mode alongside Destiny-themed cosmetics. The most iconic cosmetics are "The Crucible Lord" Lord Shaxx skin for the Centu??rion and "The Violet King" Saint-14 ??skin for Lawbringers.

The new mode for the crossover event is based on the existing Domination, but it makes a few changes to spice things up. The Scorn have invaded the map, with a Baron and its retinue taking up residence within the Cathedral map. Players won't have mi?nions to help, so each match is a warzone between the new Scorn and the enemy team.

During the three-week event, players will earn weapons inspired by Destiny, and more are avail?able thro??ugh the in-game store. That said, players will receive a free event pass for Light of the Guardians, allowing free rewards to be unlocked through participation.

Festival of the Lost is getting tired

While For Honor players are getting an entire Halloween event built around the Destiny franchise, Destiny 2 players are getting the same old Halloween event they've been getting for four years. Of course, it's not as if Destiny 2 and For Honor share development teams, but it's still a little demoralizing to see an admittedly cool Destiny Halloween event appearing...not in Destiny 2.

Festival of the Lost is set to start on October 29, bringing back Haunted Lost Sectors yet again. The event has players enter decorated Lost Sectors to fight the unique Headless Ones enemies. All the while, Guardians collect Candy to use as a ?currency for event rewards. There's nothing specifically wrong with Festival of the Lost itself??, but it's basically been unchanged for years.

While some rewards and the yearly Halloween costume cosmetics change, players have been diving into the same Lost Sectors, fighting the same enemies since before The Witness made its first appearance in-gam?e. On top of this, the timing for Festival of the Lost feels off th?is year. With the event starting two days before Halloween and running for an assumed two or three weeks, the majority of the celebration is happening after Halloween has already come and gone. 

The timeliness of Festival of the Lost hasn't gone unnoticed by players either, with some taking to platforms like Reddit to voice their frustration and confusion. One commenter said, "So we get festival of the lost literately 2 days before Halloween. I think that is way to??o late it looks like I'll be playing other games Halloween events instead."

Bungie acknowledges For Honor crossover

While keeping Festival of the Lost nearly identical to previous years and starting it so late may be questionable, excitement could be rekindled with a snazzy focal point to get players excited about Destiny 2's Halloween event beyond its new wizard costumes. In this sense, bringing some of For Honor to Destiny 2 ?would make ;sense, but Bungie hasn'?t noted that's in the cards.

Acknowledging the crossover happening in For Honor, Bungie posted, "Knights, Samurai, Vikings, Wu Lin, and Outlanders prepare to upgrade your armory. Equip your favorite warrior with gear delivered straight from The Last City, during the Light of the Guardians Halloween event. Available Oct. 24 to Nov. 14. Dates and content may change." Notably, the studio did not mention that any content would be coming to Destiny 2; instead, Destiny content would be featured in For Honor.

While it's not impossible that For Honor content could come to Destiny 2 later, it would have made sense for Bungie to note that kind of news during this communication if it was official. As it stands, For Honor players can jump into a cool and unique Halloween event based on a more fantastical franchise. For Destiny 2 players, well, once Festival of the Lost actuall?y starts, just keep running those Haunted Lost Sectors, I guess.

The post For Honor gets a cool Destiny crossover for Halloween while Destiny 2 players do the same thing 4 years ??running appeared first on Destructoid.

Long gone are pit stops to The Tower and other locales with Vault access. Episode: Revenant makes the Destiny 2 Vault available from virtually anywhere and adds in a few other conveniences to boot. Now, Guardians can access their collection of gear at any time and swap things around to their heart's content. The new system even adds an optional safeguard to protect you from ??yourself, preventing accidental vaulting with a single button press.

One of Destiny 2's most persistent annoyances has been the Vault system that Guardians use to store their gear. Initially only accessible in a few specific areas, it was the only in-game way players could store unused gear and retrieve stowed weapons or armor. The situation led to the Destiny community's wide adoption of third-party services like DIM or Little Light, ??offering an easier way to manage equipment between characters.

The Vault is everywhere

Guardian?s can now access the Vault at any time from the character screen.&nb??sp;When viewing your Guardian, players can press W (or up on a controller D-pad) to open the Vault. There are no limitations to when and where this can be done, so it's even possible to pull an item from the Vault while in combat if players really want. Likewise, the same goes for depositing items into the Vault, especially in the event your inventory is full and you can't pick up new loot.

A long-time annoya?nce with the previous Vault system was how easy it was to accidentally store away gear you meant to equip. If players ??entered the character screen from the Vault, anything they'd try to use would instead get sent off to storage. Now, a new UI element in the top left of the character screen reminds players that they're looking at their inventory in "Vault Mode." It handily also offers a toggle using the Ctrl key (or L3) that allows players to equip gear from the screen, eliminating the fear of accidental vaulting.

These Vault changes are exactly the kind of self-sufficient quality-of-life updates Destiny 2 needs. It always felt weird that third-party apps and services offered more convenient inventory management than Destiny 2 itself, and it never? seemed like an easy pill to swallow for new players introduced to the concept. Hopefully, after the success of these Vault changes, Bungie will consider tackling the dwindling total Vault storage or make the Postmaster available anywhere next.

The post Destiny 2’s Episode: Revenant breathes fresh life to the game’s Vault system appeared first on Destructoid.

In Destiny 2's Episode: Revenant, creating new Tonics and discovering recipes is a core part of the experience. However, i?t can seem like progress is stalled after players make their first few Tonics, as it doesn't appear that any other recipes are known. The solution is more straightforward than it seems, and Guardians just need to continue creating Tonics.

Bungie released all of Episode: Revenant's Act 1 content at launch, removing any and all timegates. While the whole of Act 1 is available, players can't continue to progress Fieldwork with Eido until they learn more Tonic recipes. With each Fieldwork Quest obtained, the next will call for even more Tonic recipes to be mastered. Thankfully, discovering new recipes isn't a complicated process; it just requires the time and pati??ence to farm the necessary materials.

Where do Tonic recipes come from?

New Tonic recipes are not found stashed in Raid chests or tucked away in a forgotten Lost Sector; they're instead discovered by continuously crafting the Tonic?s players a??lready know. Tonics come in four distinct varieties: Uncommon, Rare, Legendary, and Exotic. 

After crafting enough Uncommon Tonics, Guardians will discover a Rare recipe. From there, more Uncommon Tonics can be made? to potentially discover additional Rare Tonic options or Rare Tonics could be pursued to unlock Legendary recipes. Exotic Tonics are the outlier, as you can't learn a recipe for them.? There's a modifiable chance that crafting a Legendary Tonic will reward an Exotic Tonic instead.

How many Tonics must be created before earning a new recipe?

The exact number of Tonics that need to be created before learning the subsequent new recipe is the same between all types of Tonic quality, but players will have to remember what they've ??already created. It takes five brewed Tonics to learn the next applicable recipe. For example, if you craft five Tonics of Worldly Gear, you'll learn the rec??ipe for either Tonic of Worldly Armor or Tonic of Worldly Weaponry. And five more Tonics of Worldly Armor or Weaponry will reveal one of seven Legendary Tonics. After enough new recipes are learned, the Tonic menu will change to make it easier to swap between Tonic families.

Of course, the process of crafting a Tonic require??s materials it?self. Here's a breakdown of the materials and the quantity needed to craft the different Tonics available during Act 1:

The post Destiny 2: How to l?earn n??ew Episode: Revenant Tonic recipes appeared first on Destructoid.

After plenty of leaks earlier this year, NetEase and Bungie have finally announced Destiny: Rising, a new shared-world s??hoo?ter coming to mobile platforms.

The game will take place decades before the events of Destiny 1 and?? will center on new and returning characters after The Collapse, an event only shown in the se??ries' deeper lore drops so far, but will take place on a fresh timeline, NetEase has explained.

Destiny: Rising brings Bungie's shooter to mobile

For non-Destiny? fans, consider this as what the prequel trilogy is to the origi?nal Star Wars trilogy and you'll be somewhere close, with players working alongside the Iron Lords of Iron Banner fame.

"For over a decade, we have built this universe to contain many unique and wonderful stories, and we are excited to see mobile gamers be able to experience this new take on the Destiny universe from the creative tea??m at NetEase," said Terry Redfield, Creative Lead at Bungie via a press release.

“With ?Destiny: Rising, NetEase Games is honored to partner with Bungie to deliver a Destiny-caliber experience to mobile devices,�said Ethan Wang, Senior Vice President at NetEase added.

“Destiny is an incredible franchise with a passionate and dedicated global fanbase. As huge fans ourselves, we are humbled and thrilled for the opportunity to bring gamers an action-packed RPG shooter set within the Destiny Universe.�/p>

Destiny: Rising will offer first and third-perso?n combat, a??nd if you're less enthused about using your digits to poke away at your character, controller support is included, too.

Speaking of characters, NetEase is promising multiple playable ones, which is certainly different from Destiny and its sequel which have pl?ayers creating their own Guardia?ns.

Destiny: Rising also includes PvE and PvP, with the forme??r including Strikes which have six players (double the main game's three-player Stri?kes), and new locations including the Red Sea Rift, Jiangshi, and Haven.

From the sounds of things, players will see the formation of the series' iconic Last City, and maybe even the formation of the Vanguard, which for Destiny nerds like me is some pretty exciting stuff - even if it is being cast adrift o??n a fresh timeline has me a tad concern?ed about how deep it'll delve into Bungie's universe.

Players can pre-register now via the game's official site, with a closed alpha set for November.

The post Destiny: Rising is a mobile title that could?? be Bungie’s Phantom Menace appeared first on Destructoid.

With Call of Duty now under the Microsoft umbrella, the big green giant had previously flexed its muscles by making Black Ops 6 availa?ble Day One on some Game Pas?s membership options. Now, the company has confirmed it'll come to the Clou??d, too, on ??the same day.

In an Xbox Wire blog post, Microsoft has announced Black Ops 6, as well as Call of Duty's Battle Royale Warzone and last year's Modern Warfare 3, will be coming to Cloud Gaming on October 25.

You can play Black Ops 6 on your phone

As per the blog, on October 25 (Black Ops 6's launch day), all three games w??ill arrive on Xbox Cloud Gaming??.

"We’re thrilled to reveal that Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 will be playable with X??box Cloud Gaming? (Beta) for Game Pass Ultimate members at launch and will begin rolling out to players on October 25, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. PT," it reads.

"In addition, we’re also bringing Xbox Cloud Gaming support to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III and Call of Duty: Warzone for Game Pass Ultimate members on the same day."

It'll be interesting to see how popular Modern Warfare 3 is on mobile with its successor dropping on the service the ??same day, but there's always room for Favela and Rust in our hearts.

Black Ops 6 will mark the first Day One Game Pass launch since Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard, with Modern Warfare 3 coming to the subscriptio?n service just a few months ago.

This month has already been a solid month for the service, with Inscryption and Sifu being added, as well as MLB The Show 24.

The post You can play Black Ops 6, ??Warzone & Modern Warfare 3 on your phone this month appeared first on Destructoid.

Episode: Revenant has begun within Destiny 2, and numerous changes to Exotics come with it. The alterations aren't just hitting a couple of weapons or armor but sweeping across many Exotics from both categories and for all Classes. And these Exotics updates are just the tip of the iceberg for what's changing in Destiny 2 for Episode: Revenant.

Bungie shared some of what players could expect ahead of Episode: Revenant through its This Week in Destiny communications and a Twitch preview stream. These offered insights into some significant changes coming in the Episode, from Titans gaining a taunt to be more like MMO tanks to the resurgence of the Inverted Spire Strike and big updates to Onslaught. These Exotic changes come alongside additional Class and ability tuning that shifts the gameplay sandbox from its The Final Shape-launch state.

Exotic weapon changes

Bungie noted that it wanted to focus its Episode: Revenant Exotic weapon sweep on options that have been previously underserved or synergized with the new Artifact Mods. Exotic SMGs start the Episode out strong, with Huckleberry gaining a reload effect on kills and the Kinetic Tremors Perk on its Catalyst. Tarrabah is also getting some love, mirroring a similar effect to the Riskrunner. It now offers 50% Solar damage resistance in PvE and 15% in PvP while the Ravenous Bea??st Perk is active.

Exotic grenade launchers are also getting some buffs for both the Special and Heavy ammo variety. Ex Diris is getting a sizable 33% damage incr?ease to direct hits, which should be easier to land with some additional velocity and recoil changes. It also sports more ammo reserves and generates Hive moths more easily via two direct hits instead of only kills. The cooldown between moth generation has also been reduced from four seconds to three seconds. The Fighting Lion is getting a bit of a Void synergistic boost, creating a Volatile explosion on direct hits. Finally, the Prospector is getting a bit of a rework. It's now limited to six shots in a mag, and its remote detonation effects are now gone, but each shot now creates three high-damage cluster bombs.

Bungie also gave a couple of Exotic shotguns a day in the sun, Chaperone and Duality. Chaperone got a few changes to provide it with some PvE potential, allowing its The Roadborn Perk to trigger after two precision hits. The Roadborn increases handling, range, rate of fire, and precision damage. Bungie's tweaks also add 20 stability and a 25% increase in reload speed. Precision hits will extend? The Roadborn, and base ammo reserves have increased. Duality has similarly received buffs to make it more usable in PvE, decreasing the number of On Black Wings stacks required to achieve full effects. The stacks will also last longer, shif?ting from seven to 10 seconds.

Alongside these broader categories, Bungie had a few outlier Exotic weapons that received some changes. The first one is Symmetry, which should be a bit easier to use, with kills also providing a stack of Dynamic Charge to keep its effects rolling. Bad Juju also had some quality-of-life changes to make it easier to use the weapon. The Strin??g of Curses buff now lasts longer, from three and a half seco??nds to five and a half, and the Catalyst now provides a seven-and-a-half-second timer. The magazine size has also increased, going from 27 to 36. Bungie notes that the Bad Juju has "become more haunted than it used to be� Finally, Lumina got a small change, making its hip-fired projectiles behave more like healing shots from Support-frame auto rifles.

Alongside these buffs, one weapon got a bit of a nerf: Choir of One. Bungie noted the new Exotic performed a bit too well in PvE while not providing enough oomph in PvP. As such, Bungie reduced base ammo reserves to 200 from 250 and reduced the total max reserves possible from 384 to 300. The impact damage from Point-Blank projectiles has been reduced by 50%, but it deals 10% more hip-fire damage? against players. Choir of One will start with seven shots in Crucible, and ammo pickups reward seven more.

Exotic armor changes

For all of the Exotic weapons that got changed, even more Exotic armor pieces received a tweak. Most of these alterations amount to a buff, especially when considered alongside the slew of Super and ability buffs in Episode: Revenant. ?However, some previously-dominant options have been pared down so that other Exotics can shine.

Warlock

Leaning into the idea of a Stasis-focused E?pisode, Ballidorse Wrathweavers have seen some tweaks to make it more effective in higher-tier PvE content. Targets frozen by the Shadebinder Super's projectile will now suffer 100% additional Shatter damage regardless of which player causes the Shatter. On top of this, Warlocks can gain a variable amount of Super energy for granting Frost Armor using Frostpulse or Winter's Wrath, depending on how many allies are affected.

Skull of the Dire Ahamkara is getting a small but valuable update, providing Super energy whenever players defeat enemies while Devour is active. Sanguine Alchemy got a rework and now acts as the d??efault target-marking Exotic for Warlocks. Players can mark an enemy by damaging them from within a Rift, gaining 10% increased damage against marks. The Exotic also g??rants a Surge x4 to any weapons matching the damage type of your equipped Super.

The Verity's Brow and Spirit of Verity effect on Exotic Class items is getting a small change to front-load the brunt of the effect. The first stack of the Death Throes buff now provides 40% increased PvE grenade damage and adds 15% with each additional stack. Cenotaph Mask is also getting a minor update, bringing back t?he visual marker on targets under its effect. Speaker's Sight now has the ability to generate Orbs of Power back in PvP, creating one? Orb per six instances of healing in the Crucible. 

On the nerf side of things, Osmiomancy Gloves got a bit of a debuff. The armor already provided a stron??g buff to Coldsnap grenades, so Bungie reduced b?onus seeker distance and speed by 50%. It still allows the Exotic to generate grenade energy quickly, but Coldsnaps should be less of a nuisance in PvP.

Hunter

Starting Hunters off, Lucky Pants is getting a few changes, with some targeted to bring the Exotic into line w?ith other options. An equipped hand cannon now provides a movement and slide distance bonus, and the bonus to airborne effectiveness now persists whenever a hand cannon is being used. Additionally, the Out of Luck cooldown will only apply when players swap the weapon or time expires after reaching seven stacks in PvE. The maximum hand cannon damage bonus has been reduced from 650% to 400%, but players no longer need to use a hand can??non with a damage type matching their Super.

After removing the previous effect on Young Ahamkara's Spine that refunded grenade energy on grenade hits, the Exotic now has a similar version of its original ?Perk. Hunt?ers gain Tripmine grenade energy from ability hits, granting 33% energy in PvE and 8% in PvP. For the Exotic Class item, specifically for the Spirit of Synthoceps Perk, the melee damage bonus has been reduced by 50% when Stylish Executioner and Biotic Enhancements are both active.

Before Episode: Revenant, the Blight Ranger Exotic only had niche functionality to create Orbs of Power in a pinch, but it has been reworked a bit. Players can cancel the? Super to Blind and damage nearby enemies, gaining an Arc weapon damage boost. The Super will no longer generate Orbs of Power from reflecting attacks, directly generating Super energy instead. 

Raiju's Harness lost a lot of its functionality to Blight Ranger, so Bungie ?rebuilt the Exotic to better represent its lore tab. The Exotic now buffs the Gathering Storm Super, summoning a lightning strike on all nearby enemies that Jolts and Amplifies teammates. Hunters can also generate Super energy by defeating Arc-debuffed foes.

Titans

Titans are taking full advantage of their Class changes and the focus on Stasis with Icefall Mantle. The Exotic has been reworked, r??ewarding a stack of Frost Armor for rapid Stasis kills. Stacks of Frost Armor from any source now heal and the unique Class ability, Icefall Mantle, now grants full Frost Armor stacks, too. The Class ability no longer impedes jumping or sprinting, and it also works when Thruster is equipped. The trade-off is that Icefall Mantle no longer offers a Stasis weapon damage bonus and now requires a Stasis Super equipped.

The Cadmus Ridge Lancecap Exotic is also bringing some Stasis-themed love, boostin?g the effectiveness of a Diamond Lance build. The Exotic no longer requires a Stasis weapon to create Diamond Lances. Titans will make one with any weapon kill whenever they're behind a barricade with a Stasis Super equipped. Additionally, any powerful combatants damaged by a Diamond Lance will create three Stasis Crystals.

Ursa Furiosa and the Spirit of the Bear Perk on Exotic Class items are also ge??tting a tweak to support the reworked Unbreakable Aspect. The total amount of Super gained from using Unbreakable in PvE has been increased from 15% to 20%. However, that total is capped at 10% in PvP. On top of this, Spirit of the Horn, Spirit of Alpha Lupi, and Spirit of Hoarfrost now work with the Thruster Class ability on Exotic Class items.

The Thundercrash Super has always benefited from Cuirass of the Falling Star, but Bungie wanted to rework it a bit to provide more benefits beyond increasing Super damage. The Exotic now rewards Super energy whenever Titans get melee kills while Amplified and damage resistance is applied after the impact instead of an overshield. The damage resistance is 50% in PvE and 10% in PvP. To compensate for these other changes, the damage multiplier for the Exotic has reduced from 2x to 1.55x. However, total damage should still be similar to before Episode: Revenant after the Thundercrash buffs.

Bungie wanted to create an Exotic effect for Titans that worked similarly to how Lucky Pants performed for Hunters. As such, the Peacekeepers Exotic has had a bit of a rework, now providing a damage buff wh??en continuously damaging enemies with SMGs. Players can amass up to 20 stacks, which becomes 100% increased SMG?? damage.

Finally, Mast of the Quiet One got a minor tweak. In addition to its previou??s effects, t??he Exotic now offers the Devour buff. Players will need a Void-based Super to use this new effect, but it will grant the life-stealing buff whenever Titans get kills while at critical health.

The post Destiny 2: ??Every Exotic change for Episode: Reve??nant appeared first on Destructoid.

In a Developer Livestream on Twitch, Bungie spoke about what Destiny 2 players could expect for content moving into Frontiers, comparing each of the two yearly expansions to the size of the Rise of Iron expansion for the original Destiny. The studio also offered a glimpse at what new content could look like, showing some concept art and commenting on ga??meplay structure.

The Destiny 2 community has found itself in a bit of a predicament since Bungie announced its plans for the future. On the one hand, some rejoiced at the news that the game was continuing not only to receive regular expansions but two expansions a year. On the other hand, others worried that Bungie noted that these expansions would be smaller in size and scale than what players had grown used to. Bungie seemingly took the Episode Revenant livestream as an opportunity to assure fans about the future of Destiny 2, spending a good chunk of the stream talking about Frontiers.

Bungie wants to spread out the spotlight

During the stream, Destiny 2's Assistant Game Director, Robbie Stevens, outlined how future expansions for Destiny 2, starting with Codename: Frontiers, will shift in scale and structure. Instead of a single enormous expansion every 18 months or so, the new approach aims to bring two relatively large expansions annually. Each is noted to have a scope similar to Rise of Iron from the original Destiny.

"Expansions are changing going forward with Codename: Frontiers," Stevens explained. "Our philosophy behind this is moving from one really big, all-consuming tentpole moment that takes all the oxygen in the ro??om, to two big tentpole moments happening in each year."

Bungie's plan introduces more frequent content and more replayable and unique experiences. "Each expansion is going to have its own unique version of a campaign and post-game experience that you can dive really deep into beyond the initial playthrough," Stevens elaborated, comparing it to beloved areas like The Dreaming City or The Final Shape's new locale, The Pale Heart. "Making our expansions unique and deeply replayable is a big goal for us??, in large part to support all the new gear and the new tiering of gear that we're putting into t??he game."

One of the standout features of this new approach is the non-linear design being touted for upcoming campaigns, particularly with Apollo. Stevens described it as being something of a "Metroidvania-inspired" destination, implying that areas or zones ?might have layers that aren't immediately accessible. 

"You're going to journey to? a Metroidvania-inspired destination. That's our guiding light for how we're creating this new location," Stevens shared. "So, this new destination is going to feature a non-linear campaign that puts you in the driver's seat of exploring its world and its story."

Bungie claims it's not taking its foot off the narrative gas

Bungie also took some time to address some of the community worries that the story would no longer be a centric part of the Destiny experience. In short, the studio maintains that narrative is still a cornerstone of what gives Destiny its identit??y and that it won't be going away. Narrative Director Alison?? Lührs spoke on the topic.

Responding to whether Destiny 2's new content structure would allow the same quality of storytelling as it had in the past, Lührs said, "That would be news to me if [the narrative] suddenly vanished." Lührs continued, "Story is Destiny. What makes Destiny Destiny is ??the beating heart of story at its core. That's not going anywhere."

Elaborating a bit, Lührs explained that the new structure allows the narrative in Destiny to go places where it wasn't able to before. Aside from being able to play with delivery and new themes, Lührs notes that the two yearly expansions will allow the game to feel more alive, giving the changes to the universe and it?s lore a more rapid delivery.

The Narrative Director also noted that Frontiers allows some of the previous pain points within Destiny 2 to fall away. The current narrative dance players often do, where a week's worth o?f quests amounts to talking to a few NPCs in different locales, will be a thing of the past. 

"Yeah, [that Quest structure] drives us bonkers too," Lührs said. "We believe that everything should be questioned, right? Like, we should be questioning that structure; we should be reinvestigating it. Starting with Revenant and especially when we get to Apollo, we're going to be deliberately shaking it up. By the time we get to Apollo, that loop, that pattern, is more or less gone."

While it was a bit unexpected for Bungie to go all in on addressing feedback and talking about Frontiers, ??the stream certainly proved ins?ightful. It's clear that Bungie is working to do what it can to reestablish player faith. As Lührs said, "The feedback is loud and clear," so let's hope Bungie will continue taking it to heart.

The post Bungie addresses Destiny 2 Frontiers worries, sharing concept art and structu??re plans appeared first on Destructoid.

Bungie is gearing up for the launch of Destiny 2's Episode: Revenant, offering players a glimpse at what's to come in a Twitch stream. And while players already knew that the Exotic sniper Icebreaker was returning to the game, the studio announced that Episode: Revenant would also reintroduce a classic Destiny 2 Strike and an opp?ortunity to snag a free hoverboard.

Episode: Revenant is set to focus the narrative on the Scorn, undead Eliksni, and their leader Fikrul. Finding the new power of the Echo, Fikrul hopes to remake ?his Scorn. Bungie noted that it wanted the Episode to have a heavy-metal vibe, and it doesn't look like it will disap??point on that front. However, an update on the Scorn isn't the only thing the Episode promises. It's reintroducing content players are always asking for: Strikes and hoverboards.

The Inverted Spire is getting a glow-up

Payers who have been with Destiny 2 since its early days may remember the Inverted Spire Strike. It was the original PvE content available during Destiny 2's Beta and was a part of the game until it was deprioritized ahead of Lightfall. In a February 2023 blog post, Bungie outlined how it was hoping to revamp the Strike, much like Lake of Shadows or The Arms Dealer. ??;

Since then, Inverted Spire has remained in the game but hasn't been featured in the Strike playlist or as a Nightfall. Though news has been thin about Inverted Spire since then, it seems the studio is finally ready to deliver a reimagining of the Strike. Toward the end of the Episode: Revenant segment of the stream, Bungie teased that Inverted Spire would return in a new fo??rm for the Episode. 

When asked whether players could expect the same experience they remember from the last time the Strike was featured, Staff Designer Clayton Kisko said, "Nope, we're taking our approach and adjusting all the encounters. And you'll see more Vex than what you are used to." The stream host and Bungie's Senior Social Media Ma?nager, Andy Salisbury, shared, "My compatriot on the social media team, Mitch, showed me through a little bit. The only thing I'll spoil is if you like death lasers, have a great time out there."

Including a few death tra??ps and some added enemy density sounds precisely like the kind of changes old Strike content needs, allowing players to slay out with their new kits while adding a few unexpected hazards. Hopefully, those are just scratching the surface of some other signific??ant changes to Inverted Spire, much like other Strike reworks have earned.

Skimmer hoverboards can be earned with Strange Coins

One of the most unexpected and well-received updates Destiny 2 added before The Final Shape was released was Skimmers. The franchise's take on hoverboards were a hit, with the vehicles revolutionizing moment-to-moment transportation. However, as great as Skimmers were, they have only been free to players lucky enough to participate in 2024's Guardian Games.

That's changing in Episode: Revenant, as a Skimmer variant will become purchasable from Xur in The Tower. As Xur primarily deals in the Strange Coins currency, the Skimmer will be no different, so players who want one should start saving up now. The new Skimmer, the Xûrfboard, will cost 97 Strange Coins. Players won't have to wait beyond the Episode: Revenant launch to nab their Xûrfboard. If you want one, it will be available as soon as the E??pisode begins?. 

Bungie also teased something else that would be coming later on in Episode: Revenant during Act 2. The studio was coy on specifics, but Salisbury noted that some playable content would arrive "inspired from a fan-favorite activity from Destiny's past." While Salisbury's info is too vague to make definitive claims, my mind immediately goes to Sparrow Racing League. The event was a fondly remembered activity from the original Destiny, where Guardians could race each other atop their Sparrows, Wipeout-style. 

Though Bungie has steered clear of the beloved activity in Destiny 2, I can scarcely think of anything else from Destiny that hasn't already made its way into Destiny 2 that would get players as hyped as Sp?arrow Racing Leag??ue. The language was careful to note that it's something "inspired from a fan-favorite activity," so it's clear that whatever it is, it likely won't be 1:1 with its original incarnation. At any rate, players have a surprise to look forward to in Act 2.

The post Destiny 2: Inverted Spire Strike and earnable Skimmers due to return for?? Epis??ode: Revenant appeared first on Destructoid.

A new Dungeon is on its way to Destiny 2 to coincide with the release of Episode: Revenant, Vesper's Host. The Dungeon will be released on October 11, alongside a 48-hour World's First race. While this is the first time a Dungeon is getting the formerly Raid-only treatment, Bungie is pulling out all the stops with a Power-restricted Contest Mode enabled.

Though it's usually something only ever done with Raids, Vesper's Host will feature a Co??ntest Mode and race for two days after its launch. Contest Mode juices up the Raid or Dungeon, p?itting more powerful combatants against Guardians restricted by limited respawn tokens or enrage mechanics. Players have 48 hours to race and see which Fireteams can conquer the content.

That said, once the Dungeon race is over, players can tackle the content at its intended difficulty. As opposed to waiting the full 48 hours, a Normal difficulty will be available once three teams clear the challenge. Once the two days are up, Contest Mode will no longer be an option, and teams w??on't be able to attempt the feat.

How to participate in the Dungeon race

If players want to join in on the Dungeon race, they'll need to be prepared. Not only will players need a team of reliable and skilled players, but there are also some specific requirements. Notably, interested players will need to own the Dungeon Key for The Final Shape expansion. Beyond that, players will need to complete an as-of-now unreleased Quest titled "Rogue Network," which will be provided by Spider once Episode: Revenant releases.

Of course, guardians will also need to have the appropriate Power to take on Contest Mode. Bungie notes that the required Power to run the Dungeon during the race is 1985. It's certainly no hurdle for players who have continued to play after completing The Final Shape's campaign, but newcomers won't be able ;to ju??st jump right ??in.

Bungie outlined some specific criteria for completion, noting that finish time is recorded when the final chest in ??the Dungeon is looted. Additionally, qualifying teams must not have any members who have already completed the Dungeon with another team. The studio also pointed out that at least one member of the finishing Fi?reteam must have completed and looted the previous encounters to be considered.

If a Fireteam manages to complete the Dungeon during the 48-hour Contest Mode period, each member will earn a couple of special rewards. That's a unique Emblem that earns b?ragging rights, and the Dungeon's featured Exotic weapon. 

The post Destiny 2: New Vesper’s Host Dungeon releases October 11 appeared first on Destructoid.

Destiny 2 players will have the opportunity to once again dress up in-game to celebrate the spooky season, as new cosmetic armor is inbound for Festival of the Lost. This yea??r, players can dust off their wands and brooms, as the theme is witches and wizards. Some classes opted for an evil depiction of the magic-users, while another chose the higher ground to prove spellcraft can put to some good.

As we continue to inch closer to Halloween, games are starting to talk about how players can celebrate the spooktacular holiday. In Destiny 2, that's done through the Festival of the Lost event, rounding out to Guardians' and The Tower's version of Halloween. The holida??y has seen some notable changes over the years, transforming from the pseudo-horde mode Haunted Forest activi??ty to the current iteration featuring Haunted Lost Sectors.

Guardians now spend the Festival of the Lost collecting Candy as a currency and spelunking through Haunted Lost Sectors harboring the mysterious Headless Ones, bone-chilling enemies that only appear this time of year. Players can unlock fun ghost stories throughout the event and use Candy to buy mas?ks, weapons, and other goodies like the Festival of the Lost Memento.

Warlocks, the witches and wizards are coming

Last year, Destiny 2 players got some gross-looking bug and arach??nid-themed armor for Fe?stival of the Lost. This year, the theme is taking a step into the eldritch. Warlocks and Hunters are sporting the garb of a malicious spellcaster, while Titans are holding it down Gandalf style to sh?ow what good wizards can do. All of the sets look great, with the only downside being that Warlocks would have looked?? damn good in a set of that good wizard armor that Titans are rocking.

For Warlocks, the evil wizard set makes Guardians look like an aspiring Chaos cultist Psyker from Warhammer 40,000. The robes look to be mostly leather, with tattered and torn edges. The undershirt and pants are tight and black, almost looking like skinny jeans and a body suit. On the chest, pinkish-purple energy emanates from metalwork. Metal is also featured sparingly on the legs and boots, with more creating pointed pauldrons on the shoulder. Potions dangle? from the belt, and a crooke??d and pointed hat sits atop a metal helmet, completing the look.

Hunters sport a similar style, albeit with some notable differences. The class trades tattered robes for more metalwork on ?their armor, though a damaged cape still adds the right witchy vibes. The pinkish-purple energy is more prominently featured on Hunters, pulsing from front, back, and one shoulder. The wizard hat for Hunters is less crooked and sharp at the tip, but it's affixed with some metalwork that adds in some witch hunter accents.

Going against the mold are Titans, which is the only Class sporting the appearance of a benevolent spellcaster. Opposed to the dark l?eather, tarnished metal, and black linen, Titans radiate brilliance with a blue and gold aesthetic. Titans get something like a cross between a robe and a trenchcoat embellished with golden filigree. Little scrolls dot their belt as gold metal and tassels decorate their shoulders and back. Their hat is the shortest and bears the least curve, making it almost look like a pilgrim's hat, complete with a buckle.

When does the Festival of the Lost start?

Destiny 2's Festival of the Lost is set to kick off toward the end of Act 1 of Episode: Revenant, on October 29. Though Bungie hasn't s?pecified how long the event would run for, there's a pretty good chance it will run through Act 1 of the Episode, which would end after October.

However, even after Festival of the Lost starts, chances are that players will have to she??ll out a bit extra if they want to dress up for the occa?sion. While it's possible to earn masks from Eva Levante for free, the premium full costumes each year are only sold in the Eververse Store. 

While Bungie has made some Festival of the Lost sets available for Bright Dust (the earnable currency), there's no guarantee that this set will be earnable without spending a bit of real money on Silver. Either way, Tess Everis will likely be the real gatekeeper between you and your new spooky Destiny 2 attire. 

The post Destiny 2’s Festival of the Lost 2024 adds evil and good wizard cosmetics for Episode: Revenant Act 1 appeared first on Destructoid.

11 years after its initial release, GTA V is back at the top of the charts, according to data collated by GamesIndustry.biz, having been the best-selling game in Europe during August. Th??e game has sold more than 200 ?million copies globally, with only Minecraft having sold more copies.

There was some anticipation that the newly launched Star Wars Outlaws would take the spot for game sales in August, but lackluster sales for the new release and GTA V’s seemingly unending allure meant that wasn’t the case, with Rockstar’s title pushing the Star Wars open world game back into second position. Hogwarts Legacy was the third best-selling title for the month with Kingdom Come: Deliverance and EA Sports FC 24 rounding out the top five.

GTA V launched in September 2013 to much acclaim. ??In particular, it was roundly praised for its solid single-player campaign, which lasts more than 30 hours and includes tons of side quests and additional content for intrepid players.

However, it is the game’s online campaign, GTA Online that has helped it remain in the public eye and on top-selling games charts. The game still has a considerable online following and has become extremely popular with content creators for its roleplaying capabilities. There were plans for GTA V to have three DLC packs, although only one of these materialized as an online download. Rockstar has previously stated that its work on Red Dead Redemption 2 and continued work on GTA Online led to the DLCs being scrapped.

In late 2023, fans of the series were treated to a trailer for the next game in the series, GTA 6. It is expected to be released in fall 2025 and has been ??confirmed for launch on the Xbox Series X/S and PS5. It has not yet been confirmed for release on previous-gen consoles, however.

The post GTA V back at?? the top of sales charts more than a decade aft??er launch appeared first on Destructoid.

Destiny 2 players now know that Frontiers is on the horizon, but new content is coming to the ??game much sooner than that. Episode: Revenant is due out on October 8, and alongside new story content, Guardians are poised to inch their power up even more. Bungie revealed a slew of Super and ability changes, most of which are flat-out buffs.

While Tit??ans are getting some extra love in the form of a Class identity rework, Hunters and Warlocks won't be completely left out of the fun. Bungie typically does a mid-expansion weapon and ability balance update, and it appears Episode: Revenant will kick off the process. Starting things out, Bungie wants to ensure players feel powerful when using their Supers and Class abilities.

Supers and abilities getting an upgrade

Bungie outlined the upcoming changes in a recent This Week in Destiny blog. Every Class is due for at least two of its Supers to get some buffs. Notably, Titans are getting four Supers powered-up, including the already-strong Twilight Arsenal. Bungie also noted that, alongside these twe?aks, Super uptime would increase for Episode: Revenant, with more info to come. On the ability side, Swarm grenades are taking one of the only hits, making the projectiles easier to shoot down and chaining an explosion to others.

Warlock

For Warlocks, Stormtrance, Chaos Reach, and Nova Warp are?? in the spotlight. Stormtrance is already great at? taking out groups of weaker enemies, but its durability and the fact that it locked your loadout left something to be desired. Damage resistance is creeping up from 53% to 58%.

Chaos Reach will also benefit from some increased damage resistance, moving f??rom 45% to 55%. While the Super has some already-incredible damage potential, it wasn't consistently triggering Jolt or piercing Sentinal Shields or Barricades. Bungie has addressed both of these issues.

The final Warlock Super getting buffed is Nova Warp, and it, t??oo, will see an increase in damage resistance while active. While it's a small bump, every bit counts, going from 51% to 58%. The two other buffs will feel like a bigger change, increasing PvE damage by 20% and applying the Volatile debuff regardless of how long an attack is charged for.

On top of the Super love, Warlocks are also due for a small update to Lightning?? Surge. As is, it's not a common pick compared to some of the options Prismatic offers. However, Bungie is increasing damage resistance against Titan Barricades by 50%, and a successful cast will ??now make Warlocks Amplified.

Hunter

Hunters are already a force to be reckoned with between their Golden Gun Super and the Still Hunt Exotic sniper, but they're ??still getting some buffs to Golden Gun and Spectral Blades. Golden Gun, in particular, is getting a whopping 30% damage incr??ease against regular, elite, and miniboss enemies.

While Spectral Blades hasn't ever really stood out in PvE, Bungie aims to make the Super&n??bsp;a bit more usable. Spectral Blades is getting a flat 20% damage increase in PvE and a small boost to damage resistance, going from 47% to?? 58%.

For abilities, Hunters ??have a few changes. While most offer some form of a buff, a couple take a hit at Hunters dominance in PvP. First up is Threaded Specter which will now deal a flat 33% more damage in PvE. That comes alongside another welcome change that makes the Prismatic Hailfire Spike grenade more reliable, adding increased tracking and aim assist. 

On the contrary, Combination Blow is finally getting tuned down a bit. The ability currently reward??s 80 HP per kill, but it will ??now restore 40-100 based on the number of stacks. In addition, the regen no longer clears any health or shield stun players are affected by. Thankfully, to offset these changes, the cooldown between triggering the Combination Blow effect has been removed.

Titan

Titans have the most Super changes, but they vary in scope. Kicking things off is a small one, allow?ing the Howl of the Storm Aspect to be usable while in the Glacial Quake Super. The Aspect allows Guardians to slide into a Stasis wave that freezes enemies and creates Stasis Crystals.

Twilight Arsenal has been performing admirably since Bungie tweaked it following the launch of The Final Shape. That said, the axes it creates are get??ting a buff, adding an additional 23% damage. This comes alongside another change that makes the thrown axes track targets better than they currently do.

Fists of Havok will ?see a few updates. Damage resistance is going up from 51% to 58%, and it will be easier to land hits on enemies. Bungie ??described that it reworked light attacks to be more consistent, increasing range and vertical target acquisition.

One of the bread and butter Supers for Titans, Thundercrash, is getting a simple but effective change. It will deal an additional 33% base damage from its explosion, making it hit even harder. Of course, the Super changes just scratch the surface of what Titans have in store. Several abilities have been buffed or tweaked to support its Class identity overhaul.

The post Several Destiny 2 Supers and abilities are getting buffed f??or ??Episode: Revenant appeared first on Destructoid.

While news has been rolling in about the next big thing in Destiny 2 and how Raid and Dungeon content will appear?? going forward, Titan players specifically hav??e something to look forward to in the short term. The Class is getting a substantial overhaul as part of an effort to add more identity and playstyle options. The best part is that it'll go live alongside Episode: Revenant on October 8.

Over time, Destiny 2 Titans have found themselves in a bit of a pickle. While the Class can do things that none other can, like a Ward of ?Dawn dome barrier Super or c??onsume a grenade to create a mobile shield, the game doesn't actively reward defensive play. For Warlocks and Hunters, the Classes have evolved to allow players to eliminate enemies nearly as soon as they appear. 

There's not much incentive to stand around and block damage when you can destroy a room of enemies with a single grenade. As such, this has led to limited builds and playstyles for Titans, j??ust trying to keep up w??ith the other Classes. Thankfully, Bungie has some significant changes incoming for Titans.

Titans join the ranks of the MMO tank

In a This Week in Destiny communication, Bungie described how it plans to change up Titans. The studio start??ed by acknowledging that Titans didn't feel like they had a Class identity that competed with what other Classes could do. The first alteration, arguably the biggest, is that Titans can taunt enemies like a ??traditional tank.

Bungie said of the change, "We've heard your cries for more depth to Titan gameplay and more viability in high-tier endgame content, and we agree with you. Titans have so much more to g?ive than mere blunt-force trauma. They're frontliners, damage mitigators, and battlefield ?commanders. Now, we don't want to take away from or replace what the Titan already has. Instead, we want to find non-destructive ways to add depth to the Titan's kit."

The taunt ability will work primarily through the Barricade Class ability, though Bungie notes that Unbreakable Shields and Sentinal Shields will also benefit from the effect for mobile taunting. While the studio notes that the taunt will only occur if a player is ?behind the Barrier, this tweak will allow Titans more control over the flow of the battle, red?irecting incoming damage.

To further support these changes, Barricades will?? take 50% reduced damage from non-bosses, reduce splash damage by 20-60% for Guardians behind a Barricade, and grant some damage resistance during the cast animation. Unbreakable is also getting a few alterations, including generating grenade energy from blocking damage and increasing the maximum duration the shield can be active.

Other changes coming to the Titan Class

The ability to taunt isn't the only new toy Titans will have to ?play with, as a few other abilities and options have also been tweaked. Void Overshields will be more helpful, seeing an increase from 50% to 70% resistance. Stasis Crystals will als??o be detonatable via a Consecration slam or a Diamond Lance. Additionally, Diamond Lances will apply two stacks of Frost Armor to Titans and nearby allies when slammed.

The Knockout Aspect will change to help Titans stay in the action longer, starting health regen immediately. The long-maligned Shiver Strike also gets some love, refunding 80% of melee energy on a missed attack and regening 12.5% faster. On top of that, a ??successful blow now adds a Stasis explosive to the foe.

An added bonus is that the Echo of Domineering and Facet of Command Fragments are also seeing some retooling. The cooldown between triggering the effect has been reduced to four seconds from 11. As if the above changes weren't sweet en??ough, Titans can also live out their slugger fantasies with a 20% increase to unpowered melee damage in PvE and a 5% increase in PvP. The punches also have the ??chance to stun enemies.

While Tit??ans didn't start at the fron?t of the pack when Prismatic hit the scene, Bungie is making some big changes to breathe life into the Class. Time will tell how it's all received, but it seems like exactly the right kind of changes to help give the Class more identity. I can't wait to see Titans rushing into battle and soaking the attention and damage from a group of enemies, becoming the unstoppable bastion all Titans should be.

The post Destiny 2 Titans can taunt foes along??side other huge Class changes coming in Episode: Revenant appeared first on Destructoid.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is dominating the franchise's news cycle, but that's not to say that there isn't more going on in the Call of Duty world, as Warzone is adding Terrifier's Art the Clown to the game.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is almost a full year into its run, and Call of Duty: Warzone remains a favorite among many first-person shooter and battle royale game enthusiasts. To keep fans of those games engaged ahead of Black Ops 6's release, some spooky seasonal DLC is on its?? way, just in time for the Halloween season.

On September 10, it came to light that the Modern Warfare 3 event The Haunting is on its way, along with all kinds of spooky goodies. Most notably, several horror icons will be added to the game. While Michael Myers from the Halloween franchise and Sam from the Trick 'r Treat series are worth getting excited about, the one who has really created a buzz in the horror and Call of Duty communities is Art the Clown. The murderous clown, portrayed by David Howard Thornton, is the centerpiece of director Damien Leone's Terrifier film series, which launched in 2016.

In short order, Art has become quite beloved by lovers of all things scary. So, if you are one of these individuals, you're likely wondering how you can play as him in Modern Warfare 3 and Warzone. Here's how and when you can access him.

You'll have to pay up to play as Art

Thankfully, accessing Art in the two aforementioned Call of Duty titles doesn't require anything crazy. No convoluted in-game requirements, no absurd Easter egg. That said, given that this is a Call of Duty add-on (and a licensed one, at that), Art isn't a ??free download.

Instead, you'll have to pay up over in the Call of Duty Store if you want to terrify the war zone as the creep?y horror rising star. Art is available as part of the Tracer Pack: Terrifier Operator Bundle. At the time of publication, the ?exact price has not been revealed, but surely it will soon.

If the Tracer Pack follows historical precedent, it'll likely run $19.99 or 2,400 CoD points when it becomes available at the start of the Haunting event on September 18. While that may seem like a lot of money for just the Art skin, you do get a bit more bang for your buck. Aside from the Operator skin, the bundle is also advertised to include a Terrifier weapon blueprint, the Miles County Killer weapon blueprint, a weapon charm, a weapon sticker, a large decal, a Terrifier emblem and a Terrifier loading screen. Now that's more like it.

The Haunting event runs from September 18 to October 16, so if you want to get in on all the terrifying fun and ?secure yourself an Art the Clown Operator skin, that's the time to do so.

The post How to play as Art the Clown in Call ??of Duty: Mo??dern Warfare 3 and Warzone appeared first on Destructoid.

The Call of Duty series spans multiple console generations, iterating through its history. Subsets like Black Ops have become just as, if not more, popular than the originals. Over twenty years later, dozens of entries exist, making the timeline understandably complex. Here's every Call of Duty game in order.

1. Call of Duty (2003)

After making the incredible Medal Of Honor: Allied Assault, some devs at 2015, Inc. decided that they wanted more, and so went on to form Infinity Ward and give us the original Call Of Duty. The result was an even more faithful and grittier redo of some of WWII's most import??ant battles. It became a critical and sales success, naturally spawning Activision's most famous franchise.

2. Call of Duty 2 (2005)

The sequel to the original Call Of Duty, Call of Duty 2 not only came to PC, but also launched as one of the first Xbox 360 titles. It featured improved graphic?s, gameplay, and even better WWII set pieces. It would ??later be ported to mobile and Mac, but never PlayStation for some reason.

3. Call of Duty 3 (2006)

The sequel to Call Of Duty 2, Call of Duty 3 surprisingly only came out for consoles, specifically PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, and even the Nintendo Wii. To date, this one's never seen a PC port. A shame since it saw decent review scores, though it's not as highly regarded as its predecessors. This was also the first en??try ?to be developed by Treyarch rather than Infinity Ward.

4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007)

The series breaks away from the constraints of the WWII scenario to create its own original war epic set in the near future with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. We play as, among other characters, John "Soap" Mactavish, a soldier of Task Force 141 of the SAS as we uncover a conspiracy meant to start a new world war. Modern Warfare is the game that finally beat Halo and cemented the COD series as the mos??t successful FPS in the world, and naturally sp??awned various ports.

5. Call of Duty: World at War (2008)

Treyarch brings COD back to WWII but keeps things fresh by focusing on the Pacific front. While it may not bear the subtitle, Call of Duty: World at War was the start of Treyarch's Black Ops subseries. It's not as beloved as Modern Warfare, but this game was still a sales success and introduced Zombies, one of the staples of the series.

6. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is the sequel to the original Modern Warfare and continues the story of Soap and Captain Price as they face off against Makarov, an emerging threat, as well as an internal conspiracy. Modern Warfare 2 became the fastest-selling game in the ??series and remains one of the most beloved in the franchise. So much so, that it saw a remaster in 2020. It also quickly gained?? infamy for its No Russian mission, which allowed players to participate in an airport mass shooting.

7. Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010)

Call of Duty: Black Ops is the follow-up to Treyarch's World At War. It tells an original story set in the days of the Cold War and brings the Zombies game mode to new heights with its own separate story mode. It saw a mobile port as ?well, but it was a 2D side-scroller instead of an FPS.

8. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2011)

The conclusion of the Modern Warfare trilogy, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 was the first entry in the mainline COD series to be finished after the firing of the original Infinity Ward team. The team swap dramatically hurt the game and resulted in an inferior campaign and online mode. Despite that, it was still a critical and commercial hit, making $1 billion in its first 16 days, slightly faster than James Cameron's first Avatar film did (per CNET).

9. Call of Duty: Black Ops II (2012)

The continuation of the original Black Ops features a more ambitious campaign set in both the '80s and the 2020s. Though not as popular as the original MW and its sequel, many fans say Call of Duty: Black Ops II is their favorite in the entire series. In fact, it outperformed Modern Warfare 3, grossing $1 billion in 15 days (per Activision). It was also one of only two COD games to be??? released for Nintendo's short-lived Wii U console.

10. Call of Duty: Ghosts (2013)

The first attempt at a new subseries since Black Ops was Call of Duty: Ghosts. Despite being technically competent and scoring decent reviews, Ghosts failed to break new ground and awe fans and newcomers, having not sold as much as Black Ops II. Although Infinity Ward handled development for the PlayStation, Xbox, and PC versions, Treyarch worked on Ghosts' Wii U version.

11. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2014)

The COD series tries to go beyond Modern Warfare with the tale of a soldier who gets to replace his lost limb with an awesome prosthetic as he enlists in a private army. This was also the first entry to have Sledgehammer Games as the lead developer (the studio had previously assisted with Modern Warfare 3). Though Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare introduces a bunch of cool new mechanics in a decent campaign, it failed to capture the hearts of fans as MW once had. At least it gave u?s the iconic 'Press F to pay respects' scene,?? which remains a popular meme.

12. Call of Duty: Black Ops III (2015)

Call of Duty: Black Ops III was not only the culmination of the Black Ops trilogy, it's also the game with the best Zombies mode to date. Despite its age, it's maintained a dedicated fan base, at least on Steam, and has thousands of people playing it every month. Not only was this the final game for the PS3 and Xbox 360, it was the first to come out after Activision ended its partnership with Microsoft, heralding a years-long relationship with Sony t??hat saw PlayStation owners enjoy exclusive benefits.

13. Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (2016)

Another future warfare-based entry in the COD franchise, this time one where space warfare was the main draw. Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare had some impressive blockbuster-worthy moments, but it just was no Modern Warfare. I believe it proved that the sweet spot for fans of the series? was not in the past, nor in the future, but in the modern combat theater.

14. Call of Duty: WWII (2017)

As the name gives away, Call of Duty WWII the series back to the Second World War, this time with an original narrative instead of the usual re-living of the famous battles that WWII COD games had gotten us used to. Sledgehammer Games (the studio behind Advanced Warfare) spearheaded development on this one, adding a new Divisions system to replace the create-a-class system for multiplayer and bringing back health packs for the campaign rather than regenerating health. The Nazi Zombies mode made a welcome return too.

15. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (2018)

Though it features Black Ops in its title, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 doesn't feature a campaign, opting instead to focus on the then-emerging Battle Royale genre with the Blackout game mode. Not everyone was thrilled with the lack of campaign and the inclusion of microtransactions and loot boxes and, despite strong launch sales, it failed to meet Activision's expectations (via Critical Hit). Zombies fans were treated to not one? but two sepa?rate story modes, though.

16. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)

For 2019, it was decided Infinity Ward should go back to what helped cement COD's historic status and reboot the Modern Warfare storyline with... Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. As such, it features a re-imagined story from the first Modern Warfare, with Captain John Price making a return as one of the main characters. It was a phenomenal success at launch, making $600 million in just three days (per Forbes), and would give birth to Activision's dedicated battle-royale spin-off, Call of Duty: Warzone.

17. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (2020)

The Black Ops series goes back to its Cold War roots and once again has a campaign that intertwines with real-world events. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War's campaign is not as well received as the golden age of Black Ops games, and neither is its Zombies mode. Perhaps the most memorable thing about it is its 80s Action Heroes crossover, which saw sk??ins based on Rambo a??nd John McClane be added to the multiplayer.

18. Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021)

Call of Duty: Vanguard marks the series' latest incursion into WWII's European theater. Development was once again handled by Sledgehammer Games, but it failed to meet the expectations of fans and the sales targets of Activision. The company blamed this on the WWII setting, but this was also the game that immediately followed the allegations of workplace harassment and sexual assault within Activision and the ensuing lawsuit. At least Vanguard gives you no ??other option than to kill the main Nazi villain in the end, s??o that's something.

19. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022)

The continuation of the plot of the rebooted Modern Warfare series. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II garnered a lot less fan favor than the original Modern Warfare sequel because its campaign constantly fails to be as memorable and exciting as what had come prior. Yet it was a critical and commercial hit regardless, going on to be the fastest-selling COD game of all time, making $800 million in three days (via VGC).

20. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III marked a strange period of the franchise's history, disrupting the usual development cycle fans were accustomed to. Instead of a new Treyarch-made entry, Activision opted to immediately follow up with another Modern Warfare sequel. This game suffered from a highly rushed development which resulted in the weakest campaign in the history of the series, as well as pretty dismal reviews. Also, while the series' multiplayer was no stranger to crossovers by this point, MWIII really felt like it was aping Fortnite with the amount of special guest stars it added, from The Boys characters to real?-life celebrities like Nicki Minaj.

21. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (2024)

After many Modern Warfare titles and the divisive Vanguard, Call of Duty fans finally received a new Black Ops title. This time, the developers once again attempt to bring something new to the table. Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 introduces an Omnimovement system, designed to revolutionize movement in the franchise. Although the title was well received by many fans, and the return of Zombies is something to celebrate, Black Ops 6 received some criticism, as longtime fans felt that the innovations overshadowed the core CoD experience.

All Call of Duty game versions and DLCs

While we've listed all the mainline Call of Duty games, the series has seen a number of spin-offs as well. Below, you'll find a complete list of the Call of Duty series in order of release, alongside an??y associated spin-offs?? and ports.

• Call of Duty (2003)

  • Call of Duty: United Offensive (2004)
  • Call of Duty: Finest Hour (2004)
  • Call of Duty: Classic (PS3, Xbox 360) (2009)

• Call of Duty 2 (2005)

  • Call of Duty 2: Big Red One (2005)
  • Call of Duty 2 (Mobile) (2006)

• Call of Duty 3 (2006)

  • Call of Duty: Roads to Victory (PSP) (2007)

• Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007)

  • Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Nintendo DS) (2007)
  • Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (Mobile) (2007)
  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered (2016)

• Call of Duty: World at War (2008)

  • Call of Duty: World at War: Final Fronts (PS2) (2008)
  • Call of Duty: World at War Mobile (2008)

• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009)

  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2: Force Recon (Mobile) (2009)
  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Mobilized (DS) (2009)
  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Reflex Edition (Wii) (2009)
  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Campaign Remastered (2020)

• Call of Duty: Black Ops (2010)

  • Call of Duty: Black Ops Mobile (2010)

• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (2011)

  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3: Defiance (DS) (2011)

• Call of Duty: Black Ops II (2012)

  • Call of Duty: Black Ops: Declassified (Vita) (2012)
  • Call of Duty: Strike Team (mobile) (2013)

• Call of Duty: Ghosts (2013)
• Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (2014)

  • Call of Duty: Heroes (2014)

• Call of Duty: Black Ops III (2015)
• Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare (2016)
• Call of Duty: WWII (2017)
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (2018)

  • Call of Duty: Mobile (2019)

• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (2019)

  • Call of Duty: Warzone (2020)

• Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (2020)
• Call of Duty: Vanguard (2021)
• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022)

  • Call of Duty: Warzone 2 (2022)

• Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (2023)
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 (2024)

The post All Call of Duty games in order of release appeared first on Destructoid.

Alongside the announcement of Destiny 2's new content structure, players got an extra sprinkle of good news that confirmed a fan-favorite sniper rifle from the original Destiny would soon make the transition to Destiny 2. 

Bungie has confirmed the Ice Breaker is coming as a part of a new Dungeon that's also on the way. However, while details are scarce on the Dungeon it?self, Bungie had to comment on Ice Breaker, considering it accidentally became a part of the franchise's 10th Anniversary key art.

The Ice Breaker was an Exotic sniper rifle from the original Destiny. The weapon was unique in that i?t would slowly regenerate ammo but could never have more than one clip at a time. Ammo pickups also did nothing for the weapon, but kills had a chance to refund ammo and c?ause enemies to explode -- almost like a predecessor to the Firefly Perk.

An upcoming Dungeon delivers Ice Breaker to Destiny 2

On September 9, Bungie made several posts about the future of Destiny and the franchise's 10-year Anniversary. Prominently feature??d in the key art for the 10th Anniversary is a Titan holding Ice Breaker. While most of the post goes without any mention of the weapon, Bungie's communication has one telling line acknowledging Ice Breaker.

The studio said, "As you may have already guessed thanks to our key art, a certain Exotic Sniper Rifle, one considered a myth by many at this point, is resurfacing in the upcoming Dungeon. We'll share more info at a later date, but we hope this helped... break the ice."

Destiny 2's Global Community Lead further commented on?? Ice Breaker's out-of-the-blue appearance, noting that they hadn't expected the weapon would be featured in the art. "Also lol when we got the 10th anniversary art we hadn't considered IceBreaker would beâ€?there! Had a las?t minute scramble to acknowledge it. Just wait till you get your hands on it via the new dungeon (more details soonâ€?."

There isn't much known about this upcoming Dungeon other than the confirmation that it's coming and seemingly soon. It could very well be that Bungie wasn't ready to fully announce or tease the Dungeon, but the unexpected art direction forced its hand. Either way, it seems that Guardians will have plenty to look forward to in the near future, between a mysterious new Dungeon experience and the rebirth of one of the most unique weapons the original Destiny ever offered.

The post Destiny 2 to get new Dungeon featuring returning fan-fa??vorite Exotic sniper appeared first on Destructoid.

Some recent Destiny rumors have been corroborated by reputable industry sources that allege a mobile entry for the franchise, reportedly called Destiny Rising, is currently being worked on by Chinese developer NetEase. While details on the project remain scarce, prominent insiders like Jeff Grubb have comment??????????????????????????ed on its existence and seemingly confirmed that it's still being work??ed on.

This news comes in the wake of some turmoil at Bungie. At the end of July, the company had its second round of layoffs within a year, with additional employees getting integrated into Sony. Since then, conversations about the studio's mismanagement have coalesced alongside high-ranking departures and scandals.

Previous reporting from Bloomberg and Forbes indicated that a Destiny mobile game may have been among the projects canceled alongside project Payback. However, more recently, The Game Post reported that notable insider Kurakasis posted on X, formerly Twitter, saying, "Destiny Rising is the titl??e of an unannounced Destiny mobile game being developed by NetEase and Bungie[.] It has not been canceled."

The info was seemingly backed up by another insider, Jeff Grubb, who made a comment about the post on Threads. Grubb wrote, "Yeah, this is re??al. Not a lot of people from Bungie working on it. It could get announced soon." When pressed for further details in the comments, Grubb talked about gameplay, saying, "It's going to be Destiny on mobile, but with a lot of changes. Hero characters instead of building your own character, for example."

While this new information comes from reputable sources in the industry, it should be taken with a grain of salt. Bungie has not announced Destiny Rising or any Destiny mobile project in any official capacity, and plans can always ch??ang??e.

The post A NetEase-made Destiny?? mobile game is allegedly in development appeared first on Destructoid.

Destiny 2's Episode: Echoes starts its final Act today, introducing a slew of new Artifact Perks and weapons. After Act 2 buffed snipers in PvE, Act 3 shows some love to auto rifles, with a new Exotic auto rifle also dropping in the Act. And even if auto rifles aren't your thing, the new machine gun, tr??ace rifle, or returning grenade launcher might serve as the highlight?? of Act 3.

Destiny 2 switched from a seasonal model to an episodic one with the launch of The Final Shape expansion. There are three Acts per Episode, with the first, Echoes, now entering its final Act. Each Act of an Episode adds some story missions alongside episodic activities or events. Episode: Echoes set a pace for new weapons in each Act, with one returning weapon from Destiny's past. Time will tell whether t??hat delivery structure continues through the next two planned Episodes.

New Artifact Perks highlight auto rifles

Five new Artifact Perks are arriving for Act 3 of Episode: Echoes, most of which increase th??e effectiveness of auto rifles. The five Perks are spread ac?ross the different tiers of the Artifact, offering one new option per column.

In the first column, Overload Auto Rifle makes its return. This Perk allows continuous auto rifl?e fire stun Overload Champions while adding other benefits. Auto rifles benefiting from the Perk will always be considered as overcharged, reduce enemy ability regen, and limit enemy potential damage. The new second column Artifact Perk is Authorized Mod: Charged Up, lowering the cost of the Charged Up armor mod to 1. Charged Up increases a Guardian's maximum possible stacks of Armor Charge by 1.

Things heat up with the new Artifact Perk in the third column, Sustained Fire, which grants damage resistance after a few uninterrupted seconds of laying into foes with auto rifles. This is made all the better by the ?fourth column Artifact Perk, Targeting Adjuster. Targeting Adjuster has ??a chance to reward bonus weapon damage and automatically reload whenever an enemy is eliminated with an auto rifle. Players can increase their chances by defeating foes while surrounded.

Finally, the fifth column bolsters the new Shock and Awe Artifact Perk. When using an Arc or Prismatic Subclass, Shock and Awe generates a lightning strike that damages and Jolts nearby enemies whenever players get an Arc final blow while Amplified. While Shock and Awe sounds pretty good on its own for Arc-leaning Prismatic Guardians, the Perk has some monstrous syner??gy alongside the other new auto rifle Artifact Perks. All it takes is an Arc auto rifle like Shadow Price or the Exotic Centrifuse to get the best of both worlds.

New and returning weapons

Echoes Act 3 has a group of weapons awaiting Guardians, including one new Exotic auto rifle. The first new weapon for Episode: Echoes is the Speleologist machine gun. This 900 RPM Solar beast uses a Rapid-Fire Frame and can roll with favorite Perks like Heal Clip, Stats for All, E??nvious Assassin, Incandescent, and Killing Tally. A new Adaptive Frame Void trace rifle called Chronophage is also inbound, adding a second Void trace rifle option for weap??on crafting. Notable Perks for Chronophage include Shoot to Loot, Repulsor Brace, Target Lock, and Destabilizing Rounds.

Tagging along with the two new Echoes weapons is the returning special ammo grenade launcher, Martyr's Retribution. The Solar Wave Frame was an old favorite that's made even better by its updated Perk pool and Intrinsic Trait. While it's not craftable li?ke the new weapons joining this Episode, it does sport some spicy new Perks like Heal Clip, Envious Assassin, Strategist, and Incandescent.

Rounding out the updates to Guardians' arsenal is the addition of a new Exotic auto rifle, Choir of One. The weapon is earned after completing the new Exo??tic mission, Encore: Overture. The Void auto rifle lets players live out their Vex Wyvern fantasies, shooting out slow-moving, splitting, explosive projectiles. Choir of One is also craftable, so it'll only get better over time as it's empowered by completing additional objectives within Encore: Overture.

Between Act 2's solar sniper-buffing Artifact Perks, the new auto rifle-based Perks from Act 3, and some new tools to rip enemies apart, Episode: Echoes means to go out with a bang.

The post Destiny 2’s Echoes Act 3 adds new Artifact Perks and weapons appeared first on Destructoid.

It's the last week of Destiny 2's Solstice event, but even if you haven't participated yet, it's not too late to earn a set of holiday armor. That said, you'll need to spend quite a bit of time farming Alloy. Thankfully, there are ways to speed up t??he process, allowing players to make the most of the time they dedicate to Solstice.

Solstice has been a returning Destiny 2 holiday event for a few years. Traditionally, the holiday's grand prize is a set of glowing cosmetic armor, often earned by participating in the Solstice activity Bonfire Bash. This year, the holiday is a bit different, requiring players to forge each piece of the Solstice set before r?epeating the process to make it glow. Alloy is the primary material used to forge and empower each piece, so players will need a heap of it before they're done.

How to earn Alloy

After players get started with Solstice by visiting Eva Levante in The Tower and completing her introductory quest, they'll have full access to the Solstice Forge from the Quest tab in the Director. While players can also access the Forge via Eva, a trip to ??The Tower isn't required every time the tool is needed. The Solstice Forge opens access to a series of Bounties that reward Alloy, and those Bounties serve as the only way to earn Alloy.

Though each Forge Bounty rewards Alloy, the Alloy earned is specific to an armor slot. The Forge Bounties are separated by the type of Alloy they reward, with a category for each armor slot present. Each category offers three random Bounties of varying difficulty and reward potential, with the option to spend Silver Leaves to reroll Bounty options. Players can only take one ?Bounty per armor slot at any given time, so a bit of planning can go a lo?ng way.

How to quickly earn Alloy

There are really two methods for farming Alloy fast, but it all depends on whether you have ready access to a Fireteam capable of quickly toppling Dungeons or Raids. For those with an active and reliable group of friends, the best bet is to fish for Gold Bounties across all armor slots, i??deally all for the same activity. For this to work, players will need ample access to Silver Leaves to reroll Bounty options, and to make the time count; you should take the overall length and encounter difficulty into account for Raid or Dungeon choice.

If everything goes according to ??plan and you have a set of Gold Bounties for the same activity type, each Dungeon or a couple of Raid bosses will net 50 Alloy for each slot. With a bit of luck on your side and optimal execution, the process will only have to be done three times: twice for the?? initial Solstice set and then another time around for the glowing appearance.

Alternatively, if players are grinding for Solstice armor alone, the best bet is the Altars of Sorrow on the Moon. The wave-based public event has no shortage of enemies to count toward Green Bounty progress, and each full completion will net players 7-10 Silver Leaves. The strategy isn't unlike the one in place for Gold Bounties, where players want to stack as many of the ?same type of Bounties for each armor slot. That way, if all of your Bounties require Solar kills or to generate Orbs of Power, they'll all complete at roughly the same time.

From there, because you don't need to return to The Tower? to access the Forge and more Bounties, it's as simple as grabbing another set of Forge Bounties from the menus before resuming the Altars of Sorrow farm. Each Green Bounty rewards 15 Alloy, so it'll take 10 Bounties per slot or 50 total Bounties before you have enough Alloy to complete the glowing Solstice armor set. That said, each Green Bounty is relatively quick to complete in an area as enemy??-dense as the Altars.

Of course, nothing stops players from combining these two strategies as other Fireteam members are on or offline. So, it's possible to make some substantial progress by subbing in a set of Gold Bounties when the opportunity arises. The most important part of the grind is consisten??cy with which Bounties you're grabbing. After all, the last thing you want ??is to create more hurdles between you and that shiny new armor.

The post The fastest way to earn Alloy for Destiny 2’s Solstice event appeared first on Destructoid.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is one of the most anticipated games coming out this year thanks to its a??pparent innovations to the long-running series. With an open beta on the way, all interested players will get to try it, so here's how you can gain access to ?it yourself.

How to get in the Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Beta

The Black Ops 6 open beta is open to all players once it starts, but not initially. The game features an Early Access period that will allow people who pre-order the game or have a qualifying active Xbox Game Pass subscription to play it early.

If you're looking to play the beta for Black Ops 6 early, simply pre-order any Digital Edition through your platform's digital storefront. You can also subscribe to Xbox Game Pass (Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass ?PC, Game Pass Console). Both methods will automatically flag your account for early open beta access, and you'll be able to log into the Early Access open beta as soon as it opens.

Alternatively, you can pre-purchase the game at any physical retailer to receive a redemption code. This code, once entered and redeemed, will also flag you for access to the Early Acc??ess Open Beta.

For players interested in playing the open beta without a cost attached, you will be able to play once the Early Access period for the open beta has?? concluded. Once it has, you'll be able to log into the beta freely, without any extra steps.

When can you play the Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Open Beta?

The open beta officially begins on August 30 and will run until September 9. The Early Access period begins August 30 until September 4. All players, regardless of purchase status, will be able to play in the Open Beta from September 4 until its conclusion on September 9.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 officially launches worldwide on October 25 for the Xbox Series X|S, Xb??ox One, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC.

The post How to get into the Call of Duty: Black Ops ??6 Open Beta appeared first on Destructoid.

Spectre Divide is a 3v3 tactical shooter game that was developed ?by Mountaintop Studios. Not only that, this game has also colla??borated with Michael "Shroud" Grzesiek, popularly known for his Twitch streams.

Not only that, it also brings a new element called 'Duality' in which you can control two characters in real-time in a match. This element helps you defend?? two areas simultaneously, cover for yourself, and even do a kill trade.

Is Spectre Divide free-to-play?

Yes, Spectre Divide is a free-to-play game. You can download it for free once it is available on Steam. But if you want to play the game now, you can register for a chance at the closed beta on the official Steam page. The closed beta servers will open from August ??13, 202??4, to August 21, 2024.

The closed ?beta will be only available for PCs with North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific servers. Like any other closed beta, all account? progress on the beta program will not carry over to the final version of the game.

What are the minimum PC requirements for Spectre Divide?

Spectre Divide does not have heavy graphics, so you can easily play on your low-end laptop or PC. Here are the minimum PC requirements for Spectre Divide:

Minimum

It requires a 64-bit processor and operating system, and an SSD is recommended.
OS: Windows 10 Home
Processor: Intel Core i5 (4th Generation or newer) OR AMD Ryzen 5
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: Nvidia GTX 1080-Ti OR AMD RX 6700-XT
DirectX: Version 11
Network: Broadband Internet connection
Storage: 20 GB available space

Recommended

It requires a 64-bit processor and an operat??ing system.

The post Spectre Divide: is it free-to-play? appeared first on Destructoid.

There's plenty of buzz surrounding Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 as it creeps closer to its release, and understandably so. Fans of the Zombies mode had it especially good recently with the release of a t?railer showcasing an intro cinematic and snippets of gameplay for one of the game's launch maps, Terminus.

That trailer made it immediately apparent who the real big bad of the ongoing Dark Aether storyline is, and for longtime Zombies players, it's both a surprise and not much of a surprise at all who's pulling the strings. After being teased previously in Call of Duty: Black Ops: Cold War, Dr. Edward "Eddie" Richtofen (Nolan North) stands revealed as the arc's bad guy, a??nd he has a pretty m??assive target on his back.

As seen in the Terminus trailer, his name is scribbled on Grigori Weaver's (Gene Farber??) prison cell wall, indicating that he has some serious revenge coming his way. William Peck (Zeke Alton) also expresses interest in killing Richtofen for steali?ng his life's work.

We'll have to wait and see if he appears in the flesh, but how is the maniacal German scientist back in the Zombies spotlight? Ahead of the release of Black Ops 6, let's take a trip down memory lane to discuss what became of Richtofen by the end of Black Ops 4.

Richtofen's role in the Dark Aether storyline

To understand Richtofen's place in the Dark Aether saga, we have to go back to the end of the Aether story in Black Ops 4. To sum up the past decade or so, everything in the multiverse is enveloped by the Dark Aether, a twisted, corrupted version of the real world. Our main Zombies crew in the?ir Primis and Ultimis forms are killed, and the cycle they'd been trapped in for so long is destroyed. All that remains of this multiverse in the new one born out of it are Samantha Maxis (Julie Nathanson) and a young Eddie from another dimension. They walk hand in hand to the new world, though they don't live peaceful lives by any means as they beco??me adults.

While Samantha grows up to become a military operative and joins the front lines against the Dark Aether's invading forces, Eddie's story takes a more surprising turn. The specifics of his childhood remain unknown, but as an adult, he serves as the Director of the Requiem, which is a unit of the Central Intelligence Agency that monitors Dark Aether activity. Though she doesn't know it, as revealed in Black Ops: Cold War, Richtofe?n is her boss and later her interrogator as h??????????????????????????e tries to unlock her powers after she's exposed to the Dark Aether. He also oversees the arrests of her companions, hence why they're in prison before the events of Terminus.

What is Richtofen's latest scheme?

This brings us to Black Ops 6, where Requiem has been disbanded, and Richtofen seems to have given up his position at the CIA. For now, all we can do is least ??speculate as to what he's been up to and how Eddie went from an innocent child to a ruthless government figure with no regard for the lives of others.

At the heart of whatever he's concocting is his fascination with the Dark Aether. Could it be that he simply wants to harness its power for himself, much like how the pre??vious Richtofen took an interest in the power of the Aether? Or, is he more so a pawn in a larger game? Richtofen was previously influenced by the Apothicons and the Shadowman (Robert Picardo) to do their bidding, so maybe they or another malevolent entity is swaying Eddie for an unknown end.

Then again, since he has memories of the previous multiverse, unlike Samantha, maybe he wants to resurrect it and those within it, believing her Dark Aether abilities could be the key to making that happen. He might want to show her what they lost so she contributes to his grand plan to restore the banished mul?tiverse.

Are more Zombies legacy characters on the way?

With Richtofen making a comeback, some wonder if other legacy Zombies characters could emerge in Black Ops 6 and beyond. Seeing ?as Richtofen's fellow Zombies icons Tank Dempsey (Steve Blum), Nikolai Belinski (Fred Tatasciore), and Takeo Masaki (Tom Kane) are all dead, they're not likely to come back. On the other hand, there is one tenured Zombies crew that could theoretically pop up du?ring the Dark Aether saga.

The Victis crew, known colloquially as the TranZit crew since that was their debut map, was introduced in Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. Abigail "Misty" Briarton (Stephanie Lemelin), Samuel Stuhlinger (David Boat), Russman (Keith Szarabajka), and Marlton Johnson (Scott Menville) make it all the way to Black Ops 4, helping bring an end to the multiverse and kickstart the new world seen in Black Ops: Cold War and Black Ops 6.

The?y don't necessarily die at the end of Tag der Toten, simply being sent off to the Dark Aether. While it's entirely likely they were killed or went insane while there, there's a slim chance they're still alive, waiting for a chance to help out once again.

If they or others don't co??me back, though, at least longtime fans can spend some time with Richtofen, the twisted lynchpin of the entire Zombies game mode, yet again.

The post What the return o?f Edward Richtofen could mean for Zombies? in Call of Duty Black Ops 6 appeared first on Destructoid.

The JAK Slash is the Aftermarket part unlock for Week 3 of MW3 Season 5. Here's what you need to do to un?lock it.

How to get the JAK Slash Aftermarket attachment in Modern Warfare 3 Season 5

In order to unlock the JAK Slash, you'll first need to complete any five of the Weekly Challenges available to you. This can be done via playing MW3's Multiplayer, Zombies, or Battle Royale modes. Each mode has a set of different challenges that you ?can pursue for the unlock. These chal??lenges all count toward the required five, regardless of the game mode.

For the JAK Slash, I recommend completing all the necessary challenges in MW3's Multiplayer mode, as th?e challenges there are super fast to finish and easy to do. There are several t??here that can be completed using one or two gun setups, which is highly convenient if you want to unlock it fast. Here are the ones I focused on.

• Get 25 Operator Hipfire Kills
• Get 20 Operator Kills with Silenced Weapons or Throwing Knives
• Get 10 Operator Hipfire Kills with Battle Rifles
• Get 30 Operator Kills shorty after Sprinting with SMGS
• Get 10 Operator Kills with the Gun-Butt of a Weapon

I used the Sidewinder Battle Rifle and the Supperi 46 SMG for all these challenges, only changing around ?their attachments as necessary. T??he process was rather short thanks to the overlap these challenges allow for.

How strong is the JAK Slash in Modern Warfare 3 Season 5?

The JAK Slash attachment functions similarly to how a melee attack works when you have ??a Throwing Knife equipped in your Lethal slot. This is the largest advantage for the part, considering you don't need to w??aste a slot equipping a Breacher or Throwing Knife to get a one-hit kill melee attack. The attachment also gives you a small boost to your Movement Speed, Sprint Speed, and Vertical Recoil at the cost of a small reduction to your Hipfire Spread and Tac Stance Spread. The JAK Slash can also, uniquely be equipped as an underbarrel on weapons that normally don't allow attachments of this type.

The largest downside to the ?JAK Slash is that it takes up your Underbarrel slot. For many weapons, this isn't a big deal, but depending on what you're looking for, this disadvantage may not be worth it. Overall, it's a very solid attachment that will see some use depending on the gun it is equipped on, though I don't expect it to be c?ommonplace in the meta.

The post How to unlock the JAK Slash in MW3 Season 5 appeared first on Destructoid.

Another summer in Destiny 2, another Solstice holiday event. While the actual content of the event has mostly stayed the same over the last six years, the main prize, a cosmetic set of Solstice armor, has only gotten more convoluted to earn. It's now held behind a bureaucracy of Bounties and confusing upgr??ade paths, making menu dancing more of the main event than Solstice's longtime featured activity: the, frankly, brain-dead Bonfire Bash.

Solstice first kicked off in the summer of 2018, offering a permanent summer holiday for Destiny 2 to accompany its popular Halloween-themed Festival of the Lost and wintertime Dawning holiday (Guardian Games would first appear in 2020). The event brings Eva Levante back to The Tower to invite players to enter the EAZ, where the holiday activity currently sees Guardians eliminating enemies to grow the biggest bonfire they can. While there are some Solstice-exclusive weapons, the real draw for the holiday is the unique Solstice-themed armor on offer each yea?r. Bungie has experimented in the past wit??h different ways for players to earn the Solstice cosmetics, but this year might be the worst yet.

How did Solstice's armor grind change?

In years past, the Solstice armor itself wasn't hard to earn, but players would spend some time upgrading it to see additional glowing appearances. It didn't require much effort if you just wanted a set of? armor and didn't care about how shiny it was. Now, however, players can't even earn a single piece?? of the new look without engaging in some lengthy busy work.

For 2?024's Solstice, Guardians mus?t first speak with Eva Levante and complete the event's introductory quest. This is nothing new, and it is how Solstice usually starts: with a quick explanation of the event's mechanics. Those who have participated in past Solstice events might notice that before we even start the grind toward shinier versions of the event armor, or a set with better stats like 2023, we're grinding to get the armor itself.

Each piece of armor needs to be created in the new Solstice Forge menu. There, players can grab armor slot-spec?ific Bounties to earn Alloy for that piece of armor. Bounties come in three varieties: Silver, Green, and Gold. Silver Bounties are the fastest to complete (example: Defeat enemies) and reward 5 Alloy, Green require a little more planning (Generate Orbs of Power or Subclass-speci??fic kills) and reward 15 Alloy, and Gold requires the most commitment (Complete two Raid encounters) but grant 50 Alloy. Once players earn enough Alloy, they can use it to claim another Bounty from the Forge, requiring a Bonfire Bash completion to finally reward the one armor piece. 

Each piece of Solstice armor costs 100 Alloy to forge, and each Alloy Bounty costs increasing quantities of Silver Leaves, depending on the variety. Hilariously, though, it doesn't end ther??e. After players earn their Solstice armor, they can opt for the tradi?tional glowing version of the set, which requires another cycle through the same process per piece. The key difference is that the glowing armor requires 50 Alloy instead of 100, but that reprieve is offset by the Bounty's requirement to complete another 2-5 Bonfire Bash activities before it pays out.

It's way too complicated to efficiently grind Solstice armor

Complicating matters even more is the system used for Solstice Forge Bounties. The thing is, the Alloy earned from these Bounties i??s specific to one piece of Solstice armor. This means that if players complete a helmet Bounty, they'll only receive Helmet Alloy. At the same time, you can only ever attempt one Bounty at a time per armor slot. So, players might be incentivized to grab the Bounties with the higher payout. Well, even if you're capable of completing ??a Gold Bounty objective, like a Raid or Dungeon, there's no guarantee one of those Bounties will be available in the Forge. 

The available Bounties appear random, with an option in place where players can spend 5 Silver ?Leaves (the same cost as a Gold Alloy Bounty) to reroll available Bounties. But, of course, Silver Leaves are the same currency needed to obtain the Alloy Bounties themselves. Top it all off with the fact that Bonfire Bash isn't particularly engaging to play and only rewards 5-10 Silver Leaves per run, and players have quite the slog on their hands if they're going for Solstice's top prize.

It feels like an overcomplicated system designed to force a slow payout or for players to give in to the Eververse Store. For those who want?? the set and who can't be bothered with the grind, the glowing Solstice set is available for 6000 Bright Dust or $15 in real money.

The post Destiny 2’s Solstice armor grind is somehow worse than years past appeared first on Destructoid.

Bungie, the Destiny 2 studio, has a ghost haunting it. Not a spooky ghoul yellowing "boo" at passersbys, but the spectre of mismanagement. It has repeatedly risen over the years to set the company on its current course, and the studio has acknowledged it. However, after the recent layoffs, more voices are coming to th?e forefront to paint a better picture of Bungie's decision qu??ality behind the scenes.

The past week has been a somber one for Bungie, as the Destiny studio announced layoffs and a deeper Sony integration. Following the news, rumors and leaks began to circulate alleging that Destiny 2 content would scale back, which has worried the community at large. While these details may appear drastic following The Final Shape's well-received release, insider reports assert the writing has ????been on the wall for quite some time.

In Bungie's own words

Bungie flat-out noted in the restructure announcement that mismanagement had led it to its current state, saying, "To realize that ambition, we set up several incubation projects, each seeded with senior development leaders from our existing teams. We eventually realized that this model stretched our talent too thin, too quickly. It also forced our studio support structures to scale to a larger level than we could realistically support, given our two primary products in development â€?nbsp;Destiny and Marathon." 

The quote is interesting, considering Luke Smith (who recently left Bungie) had previously said during the Beyond Light expansion reveal that the reason Bungie didn't want to make a Destiny 3 was because the development would pull too many resources off of Destiny 2, leading to the game to "go dark." Of course, the studio did bring on more staff in the lead-up to and after Sony purchased the studio for $3.6 billion, but it seems Bungie might have been a bit overzealous in its hiring, as it notes further in the restru?cture post.

Adding a bit more context for current affairs, the studio asserted, "Additionally, in 2023, our rapid expansion ran headlong into a broad economic slowdown, a sharp downturn in the games industry, our quality miss with Destiny 2: Lightfall, and the need to give both The Final Shape and Marathon the time needed to ensure both projects deliver at the quality our players expect and deserve. We were ?overly?? ambitious, our financial safety margins were subsequently exceeded, and we began running in the red."

History, insiders, and former employees add context

While Bungie acknowledged the studio's mismanagement, it did not discuss the delicate details. However, considering the organization's moves over the past few ye??ars and what has been revealed by those with insider knowledge, it's easy to see how Bungie en?ded up where it is today.

The first red flag comes around a year and a half after Luke Smith's comment about not pursuing Destiny 3 when Bungie started hiring to expand Destiny to other media formats. While we never saw anything from this, Forbes' Paul Tassi notes that Bungie put some work into a Destiny animated show for Netflix that was ultimately scrapped. After Sony came into the picture, Bungie announced that it wanted to become a "global multi-media entertainment company" with aims to bring its IPs to "multiple platforms and entertainment mediums." Still, the projects seemingly bore no fruit. That said, the studio was paying salaries to those hired to help consult or produce these expe??riments with TV ??and film.

The Sony acquisition statement also advertised a hiring call to action, noting that it wanted to expand staff for "Destiny 2 and for all new worlds beyond." Simultaneously, The Washington Post reported on a now-deleted post where Bungie promised employees the Sony acquisition wouldn't lead to layoffs. However, we now have a bit more clarity into this period at the company with Bloomberg's Jason Schreier's coverage of the Bungie layoffs. Schreier notes, "Flush with cash, Bungie hired hundreds of new staff members and pursued myriad incubation projects, including mobile versions of Destiny, remakes of old games and new franchises."

Game File's Stephen Totilo reported on the Bungie layoffs while pointing out another critical piece of the puzzle: that some believe Bungie overvalued itself to Sony. "I think Sony overpaid for Bungie," said one of Totilo's anonymous insider sources. I think Bungie sold things they were just not able to deliver." Unfortunately, the bad times would start in October 2023, when the first layoffs at Bungie occurred, leading to a reported "soul-crushing" environment.

Too many spinning plates

Bungie would officially unveil Marathon in May of 2023, but all indications were that the studio had been working on it secretly for some time before its public announcement. The team was made up of Destiny alums and, specifically, Marathon's Executive Producer Scott Taylor said, "I mean it's been under wraps for so long, but as a team, we've been completely immersed in developing this world behind closed doors at Bungie. Even though there's st?ill a long way to go before release, it's ??fantastic to be able to open up (even just a little) and share what we've all been working on."

However, that's not the only project Bungie had under wraps. A few months after Marathon's announcement, the studio took to social media to advertise that it was hiring for what's become known as "Project Gummy Bears," which Bungie describes as, "One of our favorite incubation projects is a team-based action game inspired by several g?enres in a brand-new, science-fantasy universe. It draws inspiration f??rom fighting games, platformers, MOBAs, life sims, and frog-type games, wrapped up in a lighthearted, comedic world."

There's also the case of Payback, a title set in the Destiny universe initially believed by fans to be Destiny 3. As it turns out, Schreier notes that Payback was not Destiny 3; instead, it was a spin-off that took cues from games like Genshin Impact or Warframe to create a character-based third-person action experience. The project was ultimately canceled a few months before this recent round of layoffs and restructuring, but nonetheless, it had been in development alongside everything else Bungie w??as trying to get off the ground.

While it's not uncommon for studios to branch out as time goes on, Bungie is kind of a special case. Bungie only has one title on the market, Destiny 2, and it's the company's sole money maker. As a free-to-play game, Destiny 2 makes its money from micro-transactions and its live-service content, and, as the studio has noted in the past, pulling too many resources from Destiny 2 would hurt the game. It feels like we're already seeing this play out before our eyes, as The Final Shape's shift from four seasons to three Episodes has initially been met with criticism over time gating and a lack of meaningful stuff to do.

It's baffling to see all these projects in development, most of which seem like industry trend-chasers, with none being the one thing that would appease the customers already at Bungie's door -- a future for Destiny. While the verdict is still out over whether players want a Destiny 3, it does seem odd that Bungie, a company renowned for its PvE FPS gameplay, was?? putting resources into developing an extraction shooter, a third-person action game, and a MOBA hybrid before ensuring its golden goos??e was still laying eggs.

With Bungie's now-reduced size and "Project Gummy Bears" seemingly spinning out to a new studio wholly under Sony, the remaining staff are set to focus on Destiny 2 and Marathon. Even with the team's optimism around the new project, and even if it breaks through to become a success, previous decisions and mismanagement might have created a unwinnable situation for Marathon and Destiny's future.

The post Bungie’s mismanagement is coming back to haunt it appeared first on Destructoid.

Though Destiny 2's Episode: Echoes made three Battlegrounds and two seasonal activities readily?? available to players, there is even more lurking beneath the surface. The Episode quietly delivered a secret world boss encounter to Nessus, rewarding Radiolite and two Triumphs. However, before players can test thems??elves against the encounter, they'll have to complete several prior steps that involve the seasonal story and the new Battlegrounds.

Though Destiny 2 has shed its seasons for episodes, content and structure have initially appeared pretty consistent between the two models. Typically, alongside narrative missions and seasonal activities, a given Season (and now Episode) will hide a few secrets that lead to hidden encounters (like the Whetstone Exotic mission). The N??essus world boss e??ncounter is similar, not outwardly advertising its existence to players.

Prerequisites

Before players can start hunting for the world boss encounter on Nessus, they'll first need to do some work with Failsafe. While undertaking the Echoes story, players wil??l quickl?y get access to a tool called the Planetary Piston Hammer. The Hammer is primarily used throughout Echoes activities and Battlegrounds to activate Planetary Pistons and spawn Radiolite. The Planetary Piston Hammer is actually the key to summoning the Nessus world boss, but it'll need an upgrade first.

Alongside Echoes' story missions, players can optionally tackle Research Specimen quests for functional upgrades and cosmetics to decorate the H.E.L.M. The NES006 Specimen is what players will need to prioritize before they can summon the Nessus world boss, as it becomes the Assimilated Torch Hammer and rewards ??the Combat Protocol Override Research Instrument once ??completed.

Find the secret Assimilated Demolishers

With the Assimilated Torch Hammer in hand, players can head into the three new Echoes Battlegrounds in search of secret enemies. Each Battleground has a Vex waygate tucked away somewhere that initially did little else than provide ambiance. Now, w??ith the Torch Hammer upgrade, approaching the gates summons an Assimilated Demolisher mini-boss. 

• In Battleground: Delve, the Vex gate is just before players enter the arena with the final boss encounter against Kalliks, Baron of House Dusk and Hypolydron, Captive Mind. The path leading to the encounter splits just before the final chamber on the left. If players go right, they'll stumble upon the waygate.

• For Battleground: Conduit, the Vex portal can be found just after the first Planetary Piston in the open cistern chamber with circular passages out. The waygate in question is actually just around the corner to the right side of the room. An easily identifiable path of rubble leads to this Vex gate.

• The final Vex gate is in Battleground: Core, near the end of the Battleground. As players approach the boss, they may spot a platform off to the right side. The Vex gate will be visible from the main path, making it one of the easiest to find by accident.

It should be noted that, with luck, players only need to defeat one Assimilated Demolisher in an Echoes Battleground. Players will complete the first step of the Assimilated Targets Triumph, but nothing else immedi?ately happens when Guardians prove victorious. That said, the Assimilated Demolisher's defeat ensures additional rewards at the Battleground's end and offers players a chance to receive an Assimilated Beacon. Players are looking for these Assimilated Beacons as they're the key needed to summon Nessus' world boss encounter.

Showdown in Watcher's Grave

After players earn an Assimilated Beacon, they can head to Watcher's Grave on Nessus. Guardians will notice a large data pylon coming out of the ground just to the right of the transmat locale. This is where the Assimilated Beacon can be used, ?summoning three Assimilated Demolishers. 

These Assimilat?ed Demolishers are a bit beefier than the ones fought during the Battlegrounds, and each is a different type of Vex: a Hydra, Minotaur, and Wyvern. Hopefully, players will be on a Fireteam or in a populated patrol zone with other helpful Guardians. After being summoned, players will have five minutes to defeat the trio before t??hey depart. 

Players will be rewarded for their efforts if Guardians defeat the three Assimil?ated Demolishers within five minutes. Rewards always include a 400g Radiolite sample and may additionally present a red-bordered Echoes weapon. Additionally, the feat will unlock the secret Demo Squad Triumph.

The post How to summon the Nessus world boss??es in Destiny 2 appeared first on Destructoid.

The future is not looking so bright for Destiny 2, as some leaks allege that Bungie is scaling back yearly content in a major way. The game will supposedly move from the current three-Episodes-a-year?? format to two six-month seasons, with smaller DLCs replacing the major expansions players are used to. 

This report comes in the wake of Bungie's recent layoffs and parti?al Sony consolidat??ion. While the Destiny community is no stranger to a seasonal content model, it has typically been presented in four seasons spaced out annually. Of course, The Final Shape expansion traded those four seasons for three longer Episodes, the first of which has been received with mixed results due to time gating and a lack of content. If the leak is correct, then it sounds like players are going to have a?? lot more time on their hands between major beats.

Notable insider Jeff Grubb shared what he knew about Destiny 2's future following the layoffs at Bungie on Giant Bomb's Game Mess Mornings show. Grubb noted that players should expect Destiny content to scale back, saying, "When it comes to Destiny 2, the expectation, I believe internally, is that the future content will be lighter, smaller, to take less time than what The Final Shape did, require fewer people. So, there will be expansions and updates, but they will be... not a shell of their former selves bu?t they'll definitely have that vibe about th?em."

Grubb elaborated on how expansion content was allegedly being viewed internally at Bungie, saying: "Those expansions for Destiny 2? Expansion, they're not even using the term internally anymore. They're calling them 'content packs.' So, that should put it in perspective like what you should expect from Destiny 2 going forward." 

While the initial report sounded bleak, The Game Post covered an alleged leak from a previously-proved reliable source that may add additional context to what Destiny 2's future might look like. The leak maintains that, following the three Episodes already revealed, Destiny 2 would see its content delivery restructure again; moving to two se?asons annually, each lasting six months.

The leaker went into additional detail, noting that a DLC would appear around the same time as each season and that, aside from the battle pass, seasons would become free. The leak also laid out how these changes would translate to gameplay, claiming that each season, players would "[p]lay base-level activities to earn seasonal gear," and then that gear would then be used in a "Rally Event." These Rally Events would happen twice each season and feature new PvE and PvP activities. All the while, the leaker alleges that narrative would take a back seat, with story missions disappear??ing in favor of one introductory mission setting the scene for the gi?ven season.

While this information does come from notable sources, it should still be taken with a grain of salt, as Bungie hasn't publicly announced any of the information from the aforementioned reports. Still, if the reports turn out to be wholly accurate, it paints a bleak picture for Destiny 2's future.

The post Destiny 2 l??eaks allege a downshift?? in seasonal content appeared first on Destructoid.