Posted in: Movies, Video Games | Tagged: Bungie, Destiny, entertainment, halo, video games

Destiny – A Rare Experiment That Is Equally Fascinating And Disjointed

Published Sun, 14 Sep 2014 13:30:56 -0500

Patrick Dane writes for Bleeding Cool:

Destiny is fascinating. That is the feeling stuck in the forefront of my mind after a good 20 hours spent with Bungie's new IP. The universe it constructs is fascinating, the genres it meshes together, how it does so is fascinating, the aspects it nails are fascinating and its flaws, of which there are many, may be some of the most fascinating things about it. Hell, the fact that this game even exists is fascinating to me.

Destiny has been shrouded in mystery for years and until recently, it wasn't even entirely clear what exactly Destiny was. Even after completing the main narrative and now turning my sights onto the grind of the endgame, I'm still only half certain as to what the game is. It's part shooter, part MMO, part open world. I have seen many people claim that this amalgam of genres just makes Destiny another 'generic shooter', but I don't buy that at all. Destiny is something new with a distinct and unique identity which is increasingly rare in the AAA market. it's, in my eyes, an enthralling experiment that has resulted in an intoxicating concoction with mixed results.

I want to stress, that I really enjoy this game. That is important to keep in mind when I say, the story is naff. Totally naff. The delivery, the content, the beats and the narrative are all sub-par, which is surprising given Bungie's narrative pedigree in the first person genre. You get most of the narrative from the ramblings of your Ghost, Many of the missions boil down to going to a location, plopping your ghost, unenthusiastically voiced by Peter Dinklage, at a feature on the map and shooting a few waves of enemies. Once you do that, it's off to the the next feature to repeat the cycle a few times. The primary delivery of the story is your Ghosts telling he discovered something, but it rarely has a tangible consequence on screen.

Granted, this isn't too different from how Halo worked in the past, except that series was always broken up with meaningful cutscenes. Despite the repetitiveness, it all had a deeper purpose. Destiny has a handful of cinematics itself, but they are few and far between. In the end, they don't really amount to much because they just aren't supported properly. The characters you are introduced to seem like they could be interesting, but when they are relegated to less than 5 minutes of screen time during the entire playthrough, it's really quite impossible to care about them.

Now, I completely understand why there aren't masses of cutscenes in the narrative. Destiny is a game meant to be played with friends in three man fire-squads. Having a group of people sit around watching cutscenes every other mission would get in the way of the group play. Honestly though, I was yearning for Bungie to show more arrogance, making players watch cinematics to add purpose to what you are doing. Instead what we get is a collection of story beats that flip-flop between minute and universal significance, some with cutscenes and some with not. It all feels like a narrative put together by a writers room that was at war with itself, not being able to truly decide what they want to do with the world they created.

That is a crying shame too because the universe they have created is one full to the brim with beauty. Destiny has some of the most beautiful environments ever put into a game. The sweeping vistas are gorgeous pieces of art and the environments suggest a time of great prosperity and great loss all at once. The lore is also a pleasant surprise if you take the time to read the Grimoire cards which you can find on Bungie's site. Everything sqqis deliberately vague and obtuse, and while it would be nice to get answers to some pretty key questions (such as what does the Traveller actually do? What is the Darkness? How are Guardians brought back to life and where do they come from?), I appreciate it's all part of the mysterious aura Bungie are creating.

Playing Destiny is also another one of the game's real joys. At its very core, it's a first person shooter. Scratch that, it's a great first person shooter. While it loses a few marks due to some fire-fights being out in open world areas not as intricately designed as they would be in a linear narrative, Destiny can hold its own in comparison to Bungie's last golden goose, Halo. Bungie are one of the best first person shooter developers, creating experiences that 'feel' right. Destiny 'feels' right. Movement is the perfect blend of weightiness and speed, while the guns have a genuine heft to them. This is rather delightful too as MMOs often have rudimentary controls. Bungie have done something truly unique by creating a great FPS experience in a massively multiplayer setting.

As stated previously, you'll progress by playing through the game's story missions, but in true MMO fashion, it isn't the only avenue open for progress. In fact Destiny offers a fair bit of diversity in this respect, allowing players to chose from taking on bounties, doing Strikes (These are the equivalent of dungeons) or playing competitive multiplayer. Each will facilitate progress and the chance to get more gear.

Bound to be one of the most popular modes, Crucible is the competitive multiplayer of the game and it's pretty much what you'd expect. A standard collection of game types set across the 4 playable planets in the game. You take your gear with you, but it's all scaled so players are on a level playing field (except in special events). You won't pick up weapons on the map, but instead take the three you have equipped (A primary, a secondary and a heavy) and find correspondent ammo on the map. The matches are high quality, but it never really got its hooks in me like Halo once did. Everyone essentially starting off with a shotgun or a sniper is problematic and none of the maps linger for very long in the mind. That isn't to say that there is a lot of enjoyment to be had in the mode though. I'm sure tons of people will have a great time in the Crucible with their friends and it's great to have the option, even if I'm not sure I'll ever spend hundreds of hours in it.

Here is the part where you will decide if Destiny is for you or not. Your Guardian is soft capped at level 20 which should take you only 10-15 hours to max out. The doesn't end game ends there though Your enjoyment of Destiny will likely fall on how much you enjoy the post-20 grind. Bungie said in the build up to the game's release that the game only really starts once you reach level 20. I'm not sure I agree with that, but the game certainly changes. Instead of finding new content, you'll be doing Strikes, missions, challenges, the Crucible and the yet unreleased Raids. This is all in pursuit of better gear and higher reputation which do grant you higher levels. You will be doing the same missions, strikes and exploring the same locations as the ones you did post-20 which is par for the course in any MMO endgame. If you hate repetition and need diversity, then you may ultimately find Destiny lacking.

I understand the appeal of pursuing better gear and I don't mind going to the same location to do the same thing over and over again. That is just grinding, which is a key component of any MMO. If that isn't what you a4re looking for though, sadly Destiny probably won't hold your interest past level 20.

"Every end is a new beginning" proclaims the mysterious Stranger towards the end of Destiny and in many ways, that is how I have come out feeling about Destiny. This is a base to build on. The vanilla version. While you may rush through Destiny now and feel like you've gotten to the end, it's my inkling that Bungie have every intention of furthering this story, adding content and building an altogether better experience in the immediate future. (This idea supported by the already announced events this September.)

But I'm not reviewing what this game could or even will be. I'm trying to take it on its own merits right now. Destiny is a wonderful experiment in a market that too often plays it safe, supported by a universe I am becoming enamoured with. At this point though, it's also an experiment lacking true depth. It does many things well, but masters only a few. That isn't even to mention the aspects of the game that fall flat on their face.

Your feelings about Destiny will likely be wholly dependent on what you are expecting out of the experience. If you are looking for an RPG or hardcore MMO with 100s of hours of unique content, this isn't that game. If you are looking for a rock solid first person shooter designed to be played with other players and you enjoy a chase for better gear, this is right up your ally. I would posit that Destiny is worth experiencing anyways though. The world is gorgeous, the ideas are intriguing and it's rare to see a AAA game taking a risk on such an experimental formula. it's likely that Destiny a year from now will be an entirely different game, while that might be frustrating for some, Bungie has created a solid base from which to build upon. Lets hope they really do take advantage of it.

Patrick Dane, once a would be filmmaker, has somewhat accidentally found himself as an entertainment journalist over the past two years. You may recognize him from around these parts, or you may not. Who's counting? From E3 to SDCC to the Top Gear track, Patrick has explored the world of entertainment wherever it has taken him. He is always happy to talk words at you. Hopefully the ones above will suffice your needs.

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