Destiny has come under serious flak of late.
We look at why, what other games can learn from it, and at the Vault Of Glass.
For my money,Destinyis a good, arguably great game.
I reviewed ithere, giving it four stars, and still feel the same.
Theres one more thing that should be addressed first, though.
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A lot of criticism aboutDestinyhas been tied to the reported $500 million development budget.
The $500 million budget is not forDestiny,but for threeDestinygames.
You may disagree, of course, so feel free to share your own thoughts, as always.
What does this mean?
The game wont automatically fill out your fireteam for you with random players.
You either play solo, which is nigh on impossible in some cases, or form a group.
Now this may sound okay on the surface, butDestinyhas very little support in-game for group building.
You simply pop into the game.
The lack of random matchmaking has been defended, both by Bungie and players.
The most common defence is down to the Vault of Glass, the first raid.
Two players may just be able to manage here, but one?
I know I would rather play with friends, but thats not the point here.
Thats where matchmaking would work, and if you oughta, you could still arrange your own groups.
And its not the only aspect ofDestinythat requires you to leave the game, well come to that later.
Storyteller
Oh dear.
Its also an area thatll take the most work.
Destinys story is woeful, and lacks even the most basic exposition.
Whats there is, is badly told.
Who are the Fallen, Vex, Cabal and the Awoken?
Why are the Exo on Earth, and who made them?
Who is the Stranger?
What is the Black Garden?
Why do the Vex want to take over?
And why did Peter Dinklage do such a poor job with his VO?
Practically nothing is explained in the game, and only disjointed and vague history is provided.
There is a story of sorts, though.
You gain access to this by earning Grimoire cards in game.
I have to leaveDestinyand go to a website to learn about the history and story ofDestiny?Eh?!
Who thought that would be a good idea?
It doesnt even do anything for the entire game.
It just sits there.
Theres also a total lack of memorable characters.
Quite how so many good actors could produce such poor performances is a mystery.
Thats not good for the future of the series.
Lootcrate
By now youll be all too familiar with the infamous loot cave.
InDestinyyou collect loot via engrams.
Blue and purple, however, are where its at.
There was no guarantee that it would be a legendary item.
This is compounded by a lack of a player trading system, a staple of most MMOs.
And, as the loot caves have, or are being shut down, its all about the grind.
Bungie failed here as it underestimated the player need to find decent loot, and trade it with others.
Its just a given.
This is where something likeWarframesucceeds, andDestinysuffers, due to the wrong kind of repetition.
Theres also a selection of game modes.
Most simply require you to fight off waves of enemies while Ghost decodes something, and thats your lot.
It works for other games, but the key here is the avoidance of the tiresome kind of grind.
Grinding for a reward is common in games, and its expected.
Not so much fun.
Keep your grind as varied and random as you might.
Yes, you know those cool ships you might blow tons of Glimmer on?
Thats what theyre for.
This means that theres really no functional reason to buy new ships at all.
You cant even control them.
Its a massacre!
Next we come to PvP.
That said, its also different in some ways.
The most glaring issue many have with the PvP is the balance, or lack of it.
Although most multiplayer game modes inDestinystrip out level advantages, any enhancements on your weapons and your armour count.
So, higher level players will always have an advantage, with better gear and armour.
They can dish out and take more damage, and this can result in totally unbalanced matches.
Upon the completion of a match, the game awards participants with random rewards.
These rewards can be standard weapons and equipment, as well as legendary and even exotic items.
Maybe top players could be guaranteed an item, and others could be random?
Thats just one solution.
All aboard the hype train!
Luckily for Bungie, the nature ofDestinymeans that the game can be refined and problems fixed as it grows.
Even with this fact, what can other developers and publishers take fromDestinys reception and criticism?
A world wed want to spend all this time in.
Hype and advertising are tools that needs to be used like a scalpel.
This will inevitably lead to a disappointing performance.
TakeWatch Dogs, a great game, sure, but one that hardly lived up to the hype.
Im not just talking visual presentation here, we all know how that turned out.
Im talking about gameplay.
What we got was great, but we expected more, and so disappointment crept in.
Again, our hopes were raised to an unattainable level.
Now,take the recentShadow Of Mordor.
This is a point Bungie seems to have missed entirely on launch.
Many wont be back for another title if theyre not interested in the story or characters.
Thanks for that, Bill.
Most players were not at that level, and so had a lot of work to do.
Likewise, the Queens Wrath missions were aimed at high level only, as is the Iron Banner.
Surely some lower level specials would benefit both players and Bungie as a whole?
Putting up special events only high level players can attempt is not doing this.
If no one cared, it simply wouldnt be an issue.
The fact is Bungie made promises it couldnt keep, and we expected much more.
Without this hype,Destinymay have had a much easier ride.
