Destiny 2: Lightfall Review – Hits And Misses

Living games that have been around for a long time are difficult to manage and grow in new ways. Destiny 2 has to be accessible to multiple masters, with many game modes and prior changes. That challenge is keenly felt with Destiny 2’s latest expansion. Lightfall is the penultimate chapter in the storytelling arc that has been underway since the original game’s launch in 2014. In some key areas, it misses the mark in narrative as well. However, as an evolution of previous works it adds a few important elements.

Lightfall’s meandering and poorly explained plot does not offer a solid first impression. Attempts to nod tonally to ‘80s action flicks mostly fall flat, trying and failing to muster a playful vibe at odds with the impending apocalypse. This is made worse by the addition of a vendor as a core character. His dialogue is just as irritating and annoying as all of Destiny 2’s early leads. The story’s conclusion is a disappointing one, with no payoff.

Neomuna is a colorful city, but it lacks life and vitality. The city lacks that sense of exploration and discovery that is characteristic for the most exciting destinations in the game. However, the distant planet houses some enjoyable combat locales and activities, including invigorating public combat spaces, new enemy configurations, and the most dangerous non-boss enemies the game has yet introduced, in the form of the Tormentors – a great challenge, whenever they show up.

The poor taste left behind by Lightfall’s struggling campaign is gradually alleviated by much of what the rest of the expansion offers. The new Strand subclasses take a while to wrap one’s head around but eventually emerge as incredibly rewarding and powerful. The Strand ability allows for a much more flexible and manageable battlefield which dramatically expands the playstyle possibilities.

It makes a huge difference in quality of life, even though some systems may still require tweaking. The long-awaited approach to loadouts is excellent, letting you set up numerous builds to flip between on the fly – both for function and cosmetics. For newcomers to building-crafting, mods are easier to understand. Alongside adjustments to how artifact unlocks provide new abilities, and continual additions to each subclass’ options, the capability to tweak and experiment is much more enjoyable than it has been previously.

While new commendation systems and guardian ranks are great additions, they feel prescriptive. Guardian ranks demand too-specific tasks that don’t represent what they purport to do – express a given player’s experience and expertise. While commendations can be a great way to encourage better community expression, in reality, most players just do it without any consideration.

The campaign is outperformed by other investment and endgame activities. Extra missions in Stellar offer additional challenges and locations, such as the exciting hidden quest for Vexcalibur exotic. Not surprisingly, there are many exotics to add to the sandbox, and I’m eager to hunt them down. This latest raid features an interesting core mechanic, and unique visuals that combine organic and technology-infused looks to create a coherent style. And the new seasonal content, focused on Earth’s final defense against invasion and destruction, is engaging and fun.

The campaign was uninspired for me, and the legendary difficulty of it was frustratingly difficult. An expansion of a big game is much more than its first story. Lightfall sets up some strong possibilities – narratively and in the gameplay sphere – for a rewarding year of adventure ahead. Destiny 2 has made some progress, despite some frustrations. Lightfall is hit and miss, but any stumbles shouldn’t be enough to derail players’ enthusiasm for continued adventure or the excitement of seeing the epic conclude over the next year.

 

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