For the past few years, whenever a new expansion for Destiny 2 came out, I almost always started my review with something like “this is the best Destiny 2 ever”. So, walking into Destiny 2: Eclipse and seeing all the planned updates and improvements Bungie had in mind, I thought they would do the same thing again in this review. However, this is not the case.
First, let’s set the record straight: Destiny 2 is still in great shape, but anyone expecting Eclipse to be the next big leap for the game is going to be disappointed, because actually , we have taken a step forward. . back from where The Witch Queen left off. New features and additions haven’t gone as smoothly as I would have hoped and the Eclipse campaign is, if anything, a filler arc before the story culminates in Destiny 2: The Final Form the year next.
What I mean by that is that the story of Eclipse didn’t feel as big and impactful as I had hoped. It’s more like a “seasonal” story arc with a bigger production budget, which means we get plenty of brilliant action scenes that will blow your mind. But the story itself seems inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, and has a serious problem explaining itself, which must be a real nightmare for new players. What is the Veil and why did we rush to the city of Neomuna to protect it? Who are the Cloudwalkers really? What is the Witness and what does he want? And, above all, the same question that we have all been asking ourselves for almost a decade: what is the Voyager? None of these crucial questions have an answer, just telling us where the bad guys are and pulling the trigger like some sort of super-powered hitman. It’s a fun game, but coming from The Witch Queen, narratively it’s clearly a step backwards.
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And what about the new subclass, Binding? Well, the explanation of how the Guardians come into contact with the ability is riddled with plot holes, but luckily the kit itself is pretty impressive, especially the hunter bind. Mobility, lethality, fluidity, and customization make this skill set a fan favorite, more so than Beyond Light’s Stasis and even some of Light’s original subclasses. I will say, however, that Warlock’s Broodweaver doesn’t deliver the same level of excitement and is sorely lacking in damage, and Titan’s Berserker feels like any other Titan Super in Destiny 2, even though its damage is astronomically high these days. -this.
On the other hand, the enemies you face aren’t too different from what we’ve seen over the years. Aside from the Tormentors – which are exciting to face and very threatening – the Shadow Legion Cabal feels like every other Cabal we’ve faced in the past nine years of Destiny, even though they carry shields. rope and dark pylons to protect them, two mechanics that have a minor impact on gameplay at best.
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At least the new characters are interesting, right? Well… the truth is, no. Nimbus seems cliché and cheesy, and Rohan (spoiler alert) doesn’t last long enough for you to connect with him or feel the least bit hurt by his ending. And let’s not forget veteran Osiris, whom Bungie turned into one of the most irritating and frustrating characters in all of gaming in this expansion. Its whole premise is to yell at you and put you down, with no input or attempt to explain the plot or what’s going on, which feels really out of place for the character Bungie has spent years and years building. .
It all seems like Bungie has an idea of where Destiny’s Light and Dark saga ends, and to get there, we need to go through one last filler before the action-packed finale. Remember how Avengers: Age of Ultron left you feeling like “something else” was missing, but also needed to bring Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame together? Well, that’s the same feeling Eclipse left me; instead of a crescendo before the conclusion, the orchestra stumbled and skipped a few bars, throwing everything to the ground.
But while Eclipse’s story lacks punch, Neomuna is a brilliant place. The cyberpunk city really explores verticality in a way Destiny 2 hasn’t dared to before, and the settings and environments it offers are fantastic to behold. Weapons (many of which are re-skins of other weapons) and armor sets also have excellent aesthetics, and the years of refinement to Destiny’s loot and power system shine again in this expansion.
And while not technically part of Eclipse, but rather part of the larger Year 6 experience, UI updates that give personal triumphs and challenges more direction and weights are incredibly well managed (although classed as veteran like my friend who hasn’t played Destiny 2 in two years feels like a kick in the teeth) even though the new build and mod system is more confrontational. On the one hand, I can appreciate the changes that have been made and see how they will benefit Destiny 2 in the long run, but at the same time, the amount of mods being removed makes the building construction set look rather sterile and almost one-dimensional. for one, today is a huge step back from the end of Year 5 – even if the build is already confusing for new players at this point in the game.
While I’m confident the next 12 months of Destiny 2 will be entertaining and filled with narrative loops that explain and cover the questions Eclipse has left for players (some of which will no doubt arrive when the Raid opens this very Friday) , it’s hard to see this expansion as anything less than a (minor) disappointment right now, at least if you only look at the story it tried to tell. I understand that Destiny 2 is not a game that is going to be a success at first, it never was. But The Witch Queen has proven that Bungie can deliver an amazing expansion campaign along with all the other questlines and trinkets to keep players hooked for the long haul. However, Eclipse is more like extensions Shadow Keeper there beyond the light in how he approached the development of the story.
QFinally, I’d like to add that the Exotics are fantastic and really hit the spot with that power fantasy, and the new seasonal content seems like a lot of fun, but none of that makes up for the fact that Eclipse’s promised. a lot and simply failed to deliver its most important aspect: the campaign. Still, Destiny 2 is a fantastic game and the rest of the expansion is great, but is it the best Destiny ever? No. Will Bungie succeed in raising the bar? Without a doubt. However, if The Final Form follows the same path in 2024 with a lackluster campaign like we saw in Eclipse, well… then there will be a lot of very angry Guardians.