10 years ago we started the beta of Destiny on PS4. It was an exciting time, as the capabilities of console multiplayer were quickly expanding into the realm of live service, a term that didn’t quite have the same implications as it does today. There were bold claims of half a billion dollar budgets and plans spanning decades, and to top it all off, the ex-Halo developers Actually had a sleek first-person shooter on its hands. But now we’re on the other side of those promises with Destiny 2: The Final Shape, the concluding installment of the meandering Light and Darkness saga. And you know what? The b*stars really did it.
The Final Shape is a confident encapsulation of everything Destiny hoped to be. Whether that’s the refined first-person combat, the crazy building potential that the new subclass introduces, or the storylines that shine a light on characters that have been there from the beginning. Longtime Destiny fans will be grinning from ear to ear as favorite characters return, old locations are seen in a new light, and the story of the previous The Witch Queen and Lightfall expansions all come together in what can best be described as Destiny’s. Avengers: Endgame.
Destiny has always had one foot steeped in its past – that’s what makes its rich knowledge so interesting. For the past decade, we’ve listened to stories of light-bearing legends and gruesome villains. And while we’ve achieved that legendary status ourselves by defeating countless alien foes, it’s never felt like we’ve truly stood alongside Commander Zavala, Lord Shaxx, Ikora Rey, or the multitude of revered Guardians. encountered over the years.
The Final Shape changes that. The Final Shape storyline, built up in this trilogy of expansions, finally puts us at the forefront of some truly legendary deeds. As we venture into The Traveler itself, we make one last attempt to take down The Witness, the cataclysmic being behind the great collapse, and the embodiment of The Darkness we have been fighting since the very beginning. You can immediately sense what’s at stake, even as we make our anxious trek into The Pale Heart, this expansion’s new setting.
This is a much more focused narrative experience, whether that’s through the game’s excellent CGI cutscenes, or through its linear map design, which keeps us constantly pushing towards the monolith of The Witness. You’ll even get a warning if you try to deviate from the campaign, which Bungie claims is designed to be played from start to finish. With this approach, The Final Shape is easily the most compelling campaign Bungie has released, with a serious collection of brilliant moments for long-time fans.
Invoking nostalgia is a big deal in all forms of art, but callbacks to locations, characters, and even musical cues are never derogatory or cheap in The Final Shape. It all feels like a well-deserved trip down memory lane, finally sharing the battlefield with some of the game’s most iconic characters. Whether you delve into the shaky faith of Commander Zavala, the battle between the returning Cayde-6 and The Crow, or perhaps even encounter Savathun again.
There’s something for returning fans every step of the way, all culminating in a final showdown that concludes the entire saga in an explosive battle that pretty much everyone from Destiny’s past together. If, like us, you’ve been there from the beginning, it’s a truly emotional experience. After all the highs and lows of Destiny’s run, this feels like a victory lap.
For those who are more interested in shooting aliens than the why of the shooting, The Final Shape has something for you there too. Prismatic is the new subclass introduced with this expansion, allowing you to use aspects, fragments, and skills from each of the five subclasses you’ve acquired over the years. If you want to combine Stasis shurikens with a Beach Grab and a Solar golden gun, you can do just that. Prismatic feels like it’s almost game breaking with how powerful a build you can make. It’s the best-feeling power-fantasy shooter we’ve ever played – something that’s been the case for years, but has now been taken to the next level thanks to Prismatic.
We’re sure fans will still love to specialize in specific subclasses, but Prismatic is Bungie opening the toybox and letting us loose. Playing through the legendary campaign, we conjured up so many goosebump moments just from the kinetics of the first-person shots, movement and skills. Bungie has always been a master of the first-person shooter, but here it really comes into its own.
To top it all off is The Final Shape wild with its eco-friendly design. Destiny has always put a lot of effort into creating epic vistas, from the icy planes of Europa to the rust-soaked Cosmodrome. The Final Shape’s setting doesn’t evoke the same sense of place that we often find in Destiny, but that’s because The Pale Heart is all about calling back locations from the game’s past and putting a dark spin on them. Each new area is melded with oddities, whether it’s giant ghosts cast into the environment or hands and arms that replace traditional building structures. You can tell Bungie had a lot of fun designing this space, and it’s definitely the most the team has done.
As you watch the Traveler beat the campaign, a big question hovers over it: what’s next for Destiny? We’ve all been working on this, but we still have another year of content planned. Year 10 for Destiny is ditching the quarterly seasons and telling three unique stories that it is now calling “Episodes.” These will focus on the Vex, Fallen and Hive, and it already sounds like an exciting year for fans. We don’t expect to reach the threat level of The Witness anytime soon, but we will wait with bated breath to see what’s next for the franchise in the coming year and beyond.
Conclusion
Destiny 2: The Final Shape feels like a promise fulfilled. We can’t help but think back to all the late night sessions exploring iconic corners of this vibrant science fiction universe and delving into all kinds of lore to help make sense of it all. And now, despite the ups and downs, we have a satisfying ending to the decade-long saga of Light and Darkness, bringing back all those memories in one big celebration. Destiny 2: The Final Shape is the hope and dream of every other live service game out there. It’s a testament to Bungie’s unwavering commitment to a compelling saga that defied all odds and did exactly what it set out to do. This one is for the fans.