We’re all looking to get a piece of the next-gen pie, some are even quite desperate in fact, and we don’t blame you. But, we do hope you’re not this desperate. UK retailer Currys PC World currently has the Xbox Series X listed for an eye-watering £2449. That’s right, almost two-and-a-half-thousand of the Queen’s finest pound sterling, and about $3,200 USD at the time of writing.
But why, you might be asking, is a major British retailer deliberately selling the console at such a ridiculous price? Rather strangely, this surprise price tag is just another part of the retailer’s preorder process.
According to Nick Hayden, Head of Gaming at Currys PC World, the “unique pricing strategy” has been put in place to prioritize those who have already preordered the console. Every customer who has managed to secure a preorder has been supplied a code that will effectively discount the listing by £2000, back down to the expected £449.
Those who had preordered an Xbox Series X (or PS5) with Currys were already required to put down a £5 deposit and this current situation is, presumably, a way for the retailer to give everyone an option to pay the full price for the console now, or when it ships in November.
In case you were wondering, those in the UK can actually go through to the order page and attempt to buy the console for the full £2449, seriously. However, before any gamers with more money than sense jump the gun, Currys does have a failsafe in place, as all orders that are placed without the special promotional code will be canceled. Which, to be quite frank, is a very good thing.
The codes were actually only valid up until October 18, 2020, so now the page is just sitting idle with a big fat price tag attached to it. There’s a very good chance that the console will drop back down in price soon to allow others to preorder, or simply just buy it on release day.
A class action lawsuit has been brought against EA Games in Canada, with the plaintiffs essentially arguing that the games giant is profiting off an illegal gambling business by selling randomized loot boxes for cash. It’s remarkably similar to a suit filed against EA in California this August, which alleged that FIFA’s Ultimate Team mode is essentially gambling.
The Canadian suit was first spotted in a Vancouver “who’s getting sued” column by The Patch Notes, a game industry-focused law blog. The Patch Notes has found and uploaded the full Notice of Civil Claim, which contains the full details on the lawsuit.
The lawsuit is being brought against EA by two individuals who describe themselves as customers of EA. One is described to have purchased loot boxes for EA’s Madden NFL games, while the other bought loot boxes for various NHL games. As a class action lawsuit, however, the action is being brought against EA on behalf of everyone who purchased loot boxes in any of EA’s games since 2008–which may mean a hefty payout on EA’s part if the suit is successful.
Like other class actions that have been brought around loot boxes, the lawsuit cites gambling-relevant sections of Canada’s Criminal code to allege that loot boxes should also be considered a type of gambling. It also cites other international precedents, such as Japanese and Korean enforcement of loot box regulation, the Netherlands and Belgium’s recent laws against loot boxes, and the loot box inquiries in progress in the UK and US.
Note that, as a class action lawsuit, this suit is a civil suit and thus has no bearing on government regulation–though a successful result for the plaintiffs may put pressure on the government to introduce new legislation.
Canada currently has no laws around loot boxes, and has not yet taken steps to look into the issue. Other countries around the world have weighed in on the link between loot boxes and gambling, with countries including the Netherlands and Belgium taking steps to regulate loot boxes and others, such as New Zealand and France concluding that loot boxes do not constitute gambling.
The famous Peanuts TV specials, including “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown,” and “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving,” will no longer air on traditional TV.
Apple has announced that it signed a wide-ranging deal with the Peanuts rights-holders to bring these specials and more to Apple TV+. The first of them, the Great Pumpkin Halloween special, started streaming on the service on October 19 for subscribers; everyone can watch it for free from October 30-November 1.
A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving will then debut on Apple TV+ on November 18 for subscribers, before everyone can watch for free November 25-27. Finally, the Christmas special will debut for subscribers on December 4 and then become free for everyone December 11-13.
This is a big shakeup, as all three specials originally premiered on broadcast TV in the ’60s and ’70s, and they have been shown on free-to-air TV for everyone since. As such, it’s nice to see Apple continue to let everyone watch these specials for free, even if they have to wait.
Additionally, Apple has confirmed it’s working on new animated Peanuts original shows for Apple TV+. These include a new season of Snoopy in Space, as well as new specials themed around Mother’s Day, Earth Day, New Year’s Eve, and going back to school. These will be produced by the Canadian animation giant WildBrain. Some of the previously announced Peanuts shows for Apple TV+ include The Snoopy Show, a 70th anniversary documentary movie about Peanuts, and Peanuts in Space: Secrets of Apollo 10.
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales has received an update on Switch, and it’s added a major new feature. Update 1.0.2 features minor stability and bug fixes, but the main change is the addition of cross-save support with the PC version of the game.
This extends to the Steam and GOG versions, so you can swap your saves back and forth and take your adventure on the go. This is a feature not available in the PS4 and Xbox One versions–one also available in the Switch version of The Witcher 3.
The Witcher 3 and Thronebreaker on Switch just received updates!
The Witcher update focuses on fixing Simplified Chinese localization and issues with PC saves, while the Thronebreaker update introduces save transfer between Switch and PC.
Speaking of the Switch version of The Witcher 3, it’s also received an update. Here’s what it adds:
Updated fonts and localisation for Simplified Chinese
Fixed an issue with multiple file transfers to/from Steam and GOG.COM cloud saves service, which resulted in blocked progress
Numerous bugfixes
Overall stability improvements
Thronebreaker released on mobile devices earlier this year, and that version also includes cross-save functionality with the PC version. The Gwent-focused spin-off earned a 9/10 in GameSpot’s review.
The Witcher series developer CD Projekt Red’s next game is Cyberpunk 2077, which releases for PC, PS4, and Xbox One on November 19. Sadly, it’ll skip Switch.
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Despite being well over a decade old, Middle-earth MMO Lord Of The Rings Online is still adding new content, progressing its post-War Of The Ring story through the Fourth Age. The next story to be told after the fall of Sauron is the War of the Three Peaks, with the Dwarf Prince Durin marching to reclaim the mountain stronghold of Gundabad.
The new expansion brings a new six-person Instance called Shakalush, the Stair Battle, as well as a new raid called Amdân Dammul, the Bloody Threshold. The War of the Three Peaks also introduces Missions, a new style of repeatable Instance for one or two players to grind for loot and other bonuses.
Fans of Middle-earth’s cinematic adaptions may know Gundabad from Peter Jackson’s 2014 film The Battle of the Five Armies, which saw Legolas and Tauriel storming the orc stronghold. The War of the Three Peaks’ main antagonist is an Orc named Gorgar the Ruthless, who is the son of the Hobbit trilogy antagonist Bolg–though don’t expect too much of a tie-in, as Lord of the Rings Online is based on the books, not the movies.
The standard War of the Three Peaks expansion pack is available as a $20 add-on, while more expensive bundles offer exclusive items and cosmetics including new boar mounts, armor, an inventory expansion, and more.
The Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War beta has come to a close, and everyone who took part is getting a freebie for Call of Duty Mobile. Activision is giving everyone who played the beta a code to unlock the Black Ops Cold War character Russell Adler as a playable character for Call of Duty Mobile.
Codes to redeem the character are going out now, so check your email associated with Call of Duty. From there, you can follow the “redeem now” button and then enter your ID details and the code to unlock Adler. Once claimed, the reward will appear in your in-game mailbox inside Call of Duty Mobile.
Adler in Black Ops Cold War
Adler is available for both the standard multiplayer and battle royale. A new character to the Call of Duty universe, Adler is a mysterious CIA operative who lives in the shadows and is capable of “switching between disarming charisma and emotionless brutality in an instant,” according to Activision.
Adler is voiced by Bruce Thomas, who is famous for portraying Batman in a series of commercials in the early 2000s.
The Adler skin is not the only freebie for Black Ops Cold War beta participants. Everyone who reached level 10 in the beta will get the Mutual Animosity SMG weapon blueprint that can be unlocked when Black Ops Cold War releases in November.
Call of Duty Mobile recently celebrated its first birthday with a huge Anniversary update. We spoke with Call of Duty Mobile GM Matt Lewis about the game’s first-year achievements and more–check out our interview.
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As of today, Amazon’s Luna cloud gaming service is in operation, if only for a select group of users. People who signed up for the service’s early access period have started receiving invitations to join, which includes signing up for a $6 monthly subscription as well as an invite to buy Amazon’s $50 Luna Controller.
Amazon is the latest big company to get in on cloud gaming, with others including Google, Nvidia, Microsoft, and Sony already in on the action. Announced just under a month ago, invites have started going out to people in the US who signed up for early access–which you can still do here if you’re curious.
Users who sign up for the early access program will get a 7-day free trial, after which they’ll have to pay a beta price of $6 per month, which will presumably increase when Luna+ enters full release. Amazon also sent out a link to the Luna Controller, which currently can only be bought by people signed up for Luna+. The controller also has an early access discount, currently retailing at $50 while its full price will eventually increase to $70.
Amazon Luna is currently compatible with PC, Mac, and Fire TV, as well as being the first game streaming service officially available on iOS for iPhone and iPad. While there’s no Android support yet, its compatibility with iOS devices might just give it a leg up on the competition, who thus far have been hindered by Apple’s restrictive rules for the App Store.
The early access subscription includes a pretty decent selection of 50 games including the critically acclaimed Control, which are able to be streamed at up to 1080p at 60fps.
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Ten years after Amnesia: The Dark Descent set the template for indie horror, Swedish developer Frictional Games has released a direct sequel, Amnesia: Rebirth. After spin-off Machine For Pigs didn’t quite satisfy fans of the original, reviews suggest Rebirth may be just what they were looking for.
Overall, critics were impressed by Frictional’s story-heavy approach with Amnesia: Rebirth, including GameSpot’s own 8/10 review. “With Amnesia: Rebirth, it feels like Frictional has fully refined its particular approach to horror,” wrote reviewer Phil Hornshaw. “You’re trapped in a deadly, smothering world, struggling against your character’s limitations and even her perceptions. Rebirth is Frictional’s best game yet, marrying a deep, mysterious story to the signature mechanics the developer has been refining over the course of 13 years of horror games”
We’ve collected some more reviews below, with other critics who got their hands on the game ahead of its October 20 release generally agreeing that the protagonist Tasi Trianon’s story is gripping and involving, even if Frictional sacrificed some of the fear factor in service of the narrative focus. Critics generally praised the game’s refinement of mechanics that have come to be standard in Frictional’s horror games, though some were disappointed that new mechanics weren’t fully realized and could feel stale by endgame. Others warned that the game’s point-and-click mechanics could feel fiddly and imprecise on the PS4. For more reviews, check out the pieces that have been collected by our sister site Metacritic.
Game: Amnesia: Rebirth
Platforms: PC, PS4
Developer: Frictional Games
Release date: October 20
Price: $30 / £24 / $43 AUD
GameSpot – 8/10
“Amnesia: Rebirth feels like the culmination of Frictional Games horror titles up to this point. It refines the ideas and mechanics that have been central to the developer’s games since Penumbra: Overture in 2007, it hones in on effective scares while avoiding the frustrations of failure, and it tightens the focus on character-driven storytelling. Rebirth is an unsettling, strange, tragic story that deepens the Amnesia mythos in a lot of cool ways, while managing to be just as creepy and frightening as its beloved predecessor.” – Phil Hornshaw [Full Review]
Inverse – 7/10
“Rebirth is an insanity simulator in essence. Throughout the roughly 10-hour plot, Rebirth beckons you into pitch-black hallways and dilapidated crypts with a slim hope of understanding what brought Tasi here. Every new area and puzzle made me internally squeal “NOPE,” but I pressed on anyway because of Frictional’s masterful resource management system.
Like previous Amnesia titles, the longer you stay in darkness, the more panicked you become. This increases the likelihood of seeing the ghoulish, human husks that stalk Rebirth’s levels. Players must constantly juggle their supply of matches and lantern oil to illuminate their surroundings and avoid slipping into madness.” – Danny Paez [Full Review]
PC Gamer – 91/100
“Frictional has mastered the art of building tension using imagery, music, level design, and sound mixing. Parts of the in-universe story even spell out how they do this in a way that is both openly self-referential and self-congratulatory—it comes close to breaking the fourth wall, but it feels earned. The breathtaking story payoffs are well worth putting yourself through the ordeal, too. Their ability to marry deeply personal, relatable fears with cosmic horror is nearly unparalleled in games. While mechanically rusty, Amnesia: Rebirth deserves to go down as one of the most effective and mind-bending horror games ever made, just like its predecessor. See you on the other side.” – Leana Hafer [Full Review]
Polygon – [no score]
“Frictional finds success in other aspects of Amnesia: Rebirth, including its unique horror setting of the Algerian desert, its rare-in-video-games motherly protagonist desperately searching for a way home to her child, and a slowly clarifying tale of love and loss. Amnesia: Rebirth shows an inventiveness that The Dark Descent only hinted at. And it’s certainly creepy enough to satisfy the hunger for something spooky this season.” – Michael McWhertor [Full Review]
IGN – 8/10
“Amnesia: Rebirth beautifully tackles the battle between light and darkness, not just thematically but mechanically too. The areas where it clicks strike an excellent balance of problem solving and pure adrenaline, even if some of the later sections drag due to uninteresting puzzles and infrequent ghoul tussles. But with a consistently engaging story throughout, Rebirth still stands as one of the most thrilling survival horror games in recent memory – one that is anything but forgettable.” – Kyle Campbell [Full Review]
USG – 4.5/5
“Making a sequel to one of the most acclaimed horror games in recent memory may be a tall order for some, but Frictional Games has done it with aplomb with Amnesia: Rebirth. Without straying far from the formula that made Amnesia: The Dark Descent so popular and feared in equal measure—the clever use of jump scares, immersive puzzles and the light-dark dichotomy—Rebirth has reinvigorated its brand of horror with a haunting narrative that’s as moving as it is refreshing. Rebirth may still be a bit too much to bear for players who don’t usually venture into horror, but it’s a sequel that should please ardent fans and horror masochists alike.” – Khee Hoon Chan [Full Review]
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Netflix recently discontinued free trials in the US, meaning that potential viewers need to subscribe to the service to watch content on there. Free trials have been a major part of subscription services for a long time, so it’s been seen by some as a surprising move, but now some of the logic behind the move has been explained.
Netflix chief operating officer Greg Peters has responded to a question about discontinuing free trials during the company’s Q3 earnings report, saying that it’s a matter of looking at the data they’re seeing from their testing and making adjustments.
“Like most things we do, we’re constantly assessing and testing and trying to understand what’s working, what’s working best, how do we improve,” Peters says. “Based on that testing, and that actual performance, we’ve shifted our tactics in many countries, including the United States.”
He believes that a better strategy might be to treat free Netflix periods as “events”, so that many people are discovering or revisiting the service at once. “We think that giving everyone in a country access to Netflix for free for a weekend could be a great way to expose a bunch of new people to the amazing stories we have,” he says. “Really create an event. So we’re going to try that in India and see how that goes.”
Getting a free trial of Netflix previously required making an account for the first time, or attaching a new account to a new email address. Free periods could be a way to bring back lapsed subscribers, who would once again have access to their list and preferences.
Bungie has confirmed it: You don’t need to gear up for a new Destiny game. Instead, the developer is going to continue to support Destiny 2 into the foreseeable future, meaning that most of the things you’ve acquired, from premium cosmetics to hard-to-earn weaponry, will stay with you in Destiny for years to come. But although we won’t be seeing Destiny reset with a new game the way it did with Destiny 2, it is about to get a substantial shakeup. The next big expansion for Destiny 2 is Beyond Light, and it’s going to create some major changes when it arrives.
Beyond Light will majorly alter Destiny 2 as we know it. It marks the return of some big pieces of Destiny 1 content, including the Vault of Glass raid–but several locations and pieces of content that have been part of Destiny 2 since its release are being removed. Beyond Light will also change the onboarding experience for new players and is bringing the game to the next generation of game consoles.
We’ve run down all the details that are available about Beyond Light so far so you can see exactly what’s ahead for the next chapter of Destiny 2.
Release Date, Platforms, And Preorder Details
Beyond Light is coming to Destiny 2 on November 10 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC via Steam, and Google Stadia. Destiny 2 is also now on Xbox Game Pass for Xbox One, with Beyond Light coming to Microsoft’s subscription service on day one–so if you’re a Game Pass subscriber, you can skip buying the expansion altogether, so long as you want to play on an Xbox One or Xbox Series X/S (more on next-generation versions below).
There are several different versions of Beyond Light you can get by preordering the expansion. The standard edition will run you $40 and just includes the game (the Destiny 2 base game, which is now known as New Light, is free-to-play, it’s worth noting).
The new Destiny 2 expansion with access to Season 12 is $50
You can get the expansion and a season pass, which gets you access to more content and allows you to earn rewards more quickly, for $50. That preorder also comes with a few extra in-game goodies, including a Ghost shell and the Stranger’s Weapon Pack, which comes with the No Time to Explain Exotic Pulse Rifle and its Exotic catalyst.
Destiny 2: Beyond Light Digital Deluxe edition is available for $70
There are also some more involved versions of the expansion that offer more rewards. The Digital Deluxe edition will run you $70 and includes the expansion, the season pass, Beyond Light’s soundtrack, an emote, a Ghost shell, an emblem, and a sparrow.
Destiny 2: Beyond Light Stranger edition comes with a figurine depicting the Stranger
The Stranger edition gets you everything in the Digital Deluxe edition, plus a 10-inch physical statue of the Exo Stranger character for $130.
The final, most involved version is the Collector’s edition, which comes with the Digital Deluxe edition, a die-cast Splinter of Darkness replica that lights up, a Europa-themed messenger bag and canteen, something called a “mysterious logbook” (which likely contains extra story content, and “other discoveries from Europa”). That version costs $200, but is currently sold out.
Will It Have Next-Generation Versions?
Yup. Destiny 2 is playable on both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/Series S. The upgraded next-gen versions of Destiny 2 will launch on December 8, so even if you get your new console(s) on their November release dates, you’ll still have to wait a bit to play the next-gen version Destiny 2 on them. You’ll still be able to play the current-gen version of Destiny 2 on the consoles through backward compatibility and enjoy faster load times, though.
The good news is that, if you buy Beyond Light for PS4 or Xbox One, you’ll automatically be upgraded to the next-gen version of the expansion when it’s released (within that console family–buying Beyond Light on PS4 gets you the PS5 verison for free, but not the Xbox Series X version, for instance). So you can comfortably buy or preorder Beyond Light for whatever platform you’re currently playing on, knowing that when your new console comes, you’ll be able to jump right to it. Destiny 2 now has cross-save support, so the characters you’re already playing will come with you to the new platform with no issues.
Expect the next-gen console versions of Destiny 2 to sport 4K resolutions and run at 60 FPS. That’s in contrast to the current console versions, which are capped at 30 FPS–if you want it to go higher, you have to play on PC. The next-gen versions also will all include a field-of-view slider, which also was previously only in the PC version.
Does Beyond Light Have Cross-Play?
Bungie has talked about working to add cross-play to Destiny 2 so players on various consoles and PC can team up or play against each other, so we know it’s on the developer’s agenda. There’s no information yet about when that might actually happen, though, but Destiny 2 is getting a less-complete version of cross-play with Beyond Light.
When the next generation of game consoles launches in November, Destiny 2 will include cross-generation cross-play, which seems to be part-and-parcel with the free upgrade from current-gen to next-gen consoles. Essentially, that means if you’re playing the Xbox Series X/S version of Destiny 2, you’ll be able to play with your Xbox One friends; if you’re playing on PS5, you can play with your PS4 friends. So there’s not cross-play between Xbox One and PS5, or between the two consoles and PC or Stadia. Within the same console family, though, you won’t lose friends if you choose to upgrade (or choose not to).
What Does Beyond Light Add?
We know Beyond Light is going to be a relatively big expansion to Destiny 2–probably in line with the Forsaken expansion two years ago, as opposed to the smaller Shadowkeep expansion last year. (It’ll also likely be comparable to Destiny 1’s big, awesome expansion, The Taken King.) That should mean a large influx of story missions, a huge new area to explore, and some other additional content as well, like a Strike or two. If Forsaken is anything to go by, there’s probably a lot more to Beyond Light than what we’ve seen so far, including additional areas and secrets to uncover.
What we do know so far is that Beyond Light’s story takes place on Europa, a frozen moon of Jupiter. That adds a new planetary destination and a large new area to the game. The icy wastes of Europa also have dynamic weather, a new addition to Destiny 2. While you’re there, you’ll have to contend with enemies as well as blinding snowstorms that should alter your encounters, at least somewhat.
We don’t know everything that comes with Europa and the missions we’ll find there, but we do know the expansion has an all-new Europa raid: Deep Stone Crypt. This is a location that’s been discussed in Destiny lore for a while now, and players will venture inside when it becomes available on November 21, the second weekend after Beyond Light’s release.
Also coming to Destiny 2 in Beyond Light is the Cosmodrome, an Earth destination that was part of Destiny 1. We’ve spent only brief stints in the area for story missions since the release of Destiny 2–the area was replaced by the European Dead Zone in the sequel–but Guardians will visit a spiffed-up version of the Cosmodrome area in Beyond Light. The Cosmodrome will get some heavy use in a new slate of missions meant to introduce new players to Destiny 2.
At some point, Beyond Light will also add the Vault of Glass raid, which is being revived from Destiny 1. Vault of Glass will be tweaked to refresh it for Destiny 2, but we’re not exactly sure what will be changed yet.
Beyond Light is also adding a new power for players to utilize, called Stasis. More on that below.
New Onboarding Experience
With the Shadowkeep expansion, Bungie added New Light, the free-to-play version of Destiny 2. It came with a new onboarding experience for players joining the game for the first time, putting players through a Cosmodrome mission that was very similar to the one in Destiny 1. The trouble was, the New Light experience did little to teach players the ins and outs of how Destiny 2 actually works and, after completing that one mission, would send them to the Tower, where they were confused by vendors, finding the starting point for old story campaigns, and other issues.
With Beyond Light, the onboarding experience is expanded pretty significantly. Players will spend a lot more time in the Cosmodrome, where they’ll meet a new Guardian NPC named Shaw Han. Hanging out with Shaw will teach players the ropes–everything from combat to how activities work, how to deal with bounties, what vendors offer, and more. Once they finish that experience, they can then head to the Tower, where they will hopefully have a better understanding of how the entire game works and will have a solid idea of what to do next.
Veterans can experience the new starting story in Beyond Light, too. You won’t have to delete a character to access the new starter missions–Bungie says you’ll be able to access them even if you’ve been playing for years.
What Is Stasis?
The thing that’ll change Destiny 2 the most in Beyond Light is the addition of Stasis powers, which constitute a new subclass for each of the three main character classes. Currently, subclasses are based on the game’s three elemental powers: Arc, Solar, and Void. Beyond Light adds a fourth, Darkness-centric power called Stasis. Essentially, it looks like an ice- or freezing-based power.
With Stasis powers come three new subclasses. Hunters get the Revenant subclass; Titans can access the Behemoth subclass; and Warlocks gain the Shadebinder subclass. The Stasis subclasses can also be augmented with a new system that sounds a bit like armor and weapon mods, but for special abilities and Supers, utilizing new items called Aspects and Fragments.
Aspects are class-specific physical items that can be slotted into your inventory, unlocking new abilities that can be mixed and matched. Fragments, which aren’t locked to specific classes, can be added to these Aspects and offer passive perks at the cost of a stat penalty. In general, the system will give you the opportunity to customize your Stasis classes a little more than the current set of subclasses, and might suggest the direction Bungie intends to take Guardian character customization in the future.
Check out the trailer showing off the subclasses below. You can also read more specifics about each on Bungie’s website.
What’s Leaving With Beyond Light?
One of the biggest changes with Beyond Light is the introduction of the Destiny Content Vault, which is the removal and shuttering of some content that’s been in the game since Destiny 2’s release. According to Bungie, the idea here is that the size of Destiny 2 is getting unmanageable, and the game can’t continue to grow with expansion after expansion. For one thing, the more stuff in the game, the more chances for weird bugs that mar the experience and require Bungie to quickly address them. For another thing, large sections of content just sit on players’ hard drives, going mostly unused. The Vault idea is meant to help streamline Destiny 2’s file size, giving Bungie room to add or subtract things as needed. Some of those additions can include Destiny 1 content, like the Cosmodrome and the Vault of Glass. The developer has also maintained that the content that goes into the Vault could one day be reintroduced in some form or another–it’s not gone, it’s just not being used right now.
How that works out in practice is yet to be seen, but a number of things are going into the DCV starting with Beyond Light. These include three planetary destinations–Io, Titan, and Mercury–and the Leviathan area, plus all their related content. We’re also seeing some streamlining of Strikes, Crucible maps, and the two current Gambit modes. Gambit is getting reworked to incorporate some ideas of Gambit Prime, like the longer single round rather than a best-of-three system, but going forward, there will only be one Gambit mode. The Gambit Prime armor mechanics, where you use a certain armor set to get bonuses in the mode, are getting retired. The Reckoning activity that goes with Gambit Prime is also going into the DCV.
(You’ll still be able to earn these by other means.)
Sturm
MIDA Multi-tool
Rat King
Legend of Acrius
Sleeper Simulant
Polaris Lance
Worldline Zero
Ace of Spades
The Last Word
Le Monarque
Jotunn
Izanagi’s Burden
Thorn
Lumina
Truth
Bad Juju
Exotic Catalysts
(Nothing changes if you have these Catalysts already, but you won’t be able to earn them if you don’t already have them.)
Bad Juju
The Huckleberry
Izanagi’s Burden
Legend of Acrius
Polaris Lance
Skyburner’s Oath
Sleeper Simulant
Telesto
Outbreak Perfected
Whisper of the Worm
Worldline Zero
What Else Is Going Away?
Bungie is also making a big change to the Destiny 2 weapons system with Beyond Light, one that has already been implemented in the game. As with the DCV, Bungie is also dealing with constantly creating and adding new weapons to the Destiny 2 world. For example, the last year has seen about 10 new weapons added to Destiny 2 with each new season, adding something like 40 new guns to various loot pools. Players latch on to some of these guns, but not all of them get used by the community at large–they often just sit in player vaults or get deleted because they’re not currently in vogue as part of the overall Destiny 2 metagame.
To alleviate that issue, Bungie has introduced a Power limit on guns, which has the effect of putting a lifespan on all the weapons in the game. Right now, all weapons and armor have a Power level, and the average Power of all your equipment determines your character’s overall strength. Guns and armor have a certain Power level when you obtain them, but you can increase it by cannibalizing other items you don’t want with a higher Power level through a process called Infusion. So up to now, even if you earned a gun back in Destiny 2’s first year, you could still be using it today by continually infusing it to make it stronger–even though the Power level caps have been raised significantly since then.
Beyond Light changes that. Now, most guns will have a maximum Power level, which will usually be whatever Bungie intends for the Power cap to be one year from the season you earn the gun. Old weapons, like the pinnacle guns The Recluse and The Mountaintop, are hitting their maximum Power levels right now, in the Season of Arrivals. That means in Beyond Light, you’re going to be finding guns that will be up to the new Power level cap of 1230, but your Recluse will be stuck forever at 1060. And that means the gun will be underpowered for new content.
It’s worth noting that even though a gun will be underpowered for new content, it’ll still be viable in some situations, like in the Crucible, where Power levels don’t matter. In activities such as the Trials of Osiris and the Iron Banner, however, those underpowered guns are going to be pretty worthless. A lot of old favorites are being sunsetted–basically anything from before the last few seasons will be pretty much useless in the new expansion’s PvE content. “Gunsetting” is a contentious issue for the Destiny 2 community, and a lot of players are not happy about it, particularly if they spent hours and hours trying to earn top-tier weapons like Recluse, Mountaintop, Luna’s Howl, and others.
What’s The Beyond Light Story?
There’s a lot we don’t know about the narrative of Beyond Light, but we have a few interesting tidbits so far that give some hints about what to expect from the ongoing story of Destiny 2.
First, we have to talk about what’s been happening this year in the world of Destiny. In the Shadowkeep expansion, players discovered a Pyramid ship hidden on the Moon. These are the ships controlled by the entities we know only as the Darkness, who were responsible for the Collapse. That’s the apocalypse that happened in the distant past of Destiny, transforming humanity’s solar system-spanning Golden Age into a new dark age of death and suffering. The Darkness hates the Traveler, the big robot god that hovers over the Last City and gives Destiny players, the Guardians, their cool powers. Much more than that, we don’t really know.
At the end of the Destiny 2 vanilla campaign, players saved and awoke the Traveler after it had been dormant for centuries. That let out a wave of Light energy, the Traveler’s power, that seems to have also reawakened the Darkness. A scene during the ending of the Destiny 2 story campaign showed the Pyramid ships outside the solar system, heading back toward Earth. In Destiny 2’s most recent season, the Season of Arrivals, the Darkness finally showed up.
This whole season has been a strange conflict between the Darkness and Savathun, the trickster queen of the death-worshipping aliens known as the Hive. When the Darkness arrived, it sent a message to Guardians, and we spent the season trying to decrypt it–while also accepting “gifts” from the Darkness in the form of powerful new weapons. The Hive seem actively opposed to the Darkness despite a long history serving its power, and Savathun has been trying to prevent us from learning what the Darkness has to say.
When we finally got the message from the Darkness at the end of the Season of Arrivals, it told us to investigate Europa for some hidden power there. To find that message, we’ve been working with Eris Morn, an expert in the Hive, and The Drifter, a former Guardian who seems to have gotten closer to the Darkness than anyone else. The announcement trailer for Beyond Light sees both of them heading to Europa to find out what the Darkness wants us to see there. They’re also joined by the Exo Stranger, a character from the Destiny 1 vanilla campaign, about whom we know almost nothing (but who directed us to fight the Vex in the Black Garden and destroy its Heart, which was seemingly a big floating mass of Darkness).
It’s also worth noting that the Darkness seems like it’s trying to seduce Guardians to its side, and we don’t know its full agenda. Instead of coming back to Earth and waging war on the Traveler, the Pyramid ships have been relatively nice and welcoming, even offering weapons–but it all feels like a trick to pull players to the evil side. Eris and the Drifter have been cautiously trying to figure out what the Darkness’s endgame is, and that answer seems to lie on Europa. The inclusion of new Stasis powers, however, suggests that maybe the Darkness could be successful in coaxing some Guardians to its side.
Beyond Light Trailers
The first trailers for Beyond Light gives some setup details about what we can expect from the story, finding Eris Morn, The Drifter, and the Exo Stranger converging on Europa in search of the Darkness.
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Destiny 2: Beyond Light – Official Expansion Reveal Trailer
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Bungie’s latest trailer for Beyond Light gives more context about the story. It starts with a distress call sent by Variks the Loyal, a Destiny 1 character who has been missing for some time. Variks was a background player in the Forsaken expansion. He formerly served the Awoken queen Mara Sov, but after her apparent death in Destiny 1’s The Taken King expansion, Variks vanished. He joined back up with the Fallen in an effort to save his people and betrayed the Awoken in doing so. Variks is the guy who released Uldren Sov and the Scourge Barons from the Prison of Elders in Forsaken, so in an indirect way, Variks is responsible for the death of Cayde-6.
Now, a Fallen Kell called Eramis has discovered the power of Stasis on Europa and means to use it to fight Guardians and get to the Traveler. That’s got Variks worried, since the dark power is apparently doing more harm than good for the Fallen. Check out the trailer below.
We also got a new story breakdown from Bungie that details the characters in play on Europa. It gives some background on the villains you’re facing: Eramis, the Kell of House Salvation, who has discovered the power of Stasis.
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Destiny 2: Beyond Light – Official Story Reveal Trailer
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“The deadly Kell of Darkness seeks to restore the glory of her people,” Bungie’s description of Eramis reads. “To exact revenge on the Traveler for abandoning them. To forge Eliksni culture anew, free from the weight of its past. Now imbued with the power of Stasis, she has found the ultimate tool to achieve her aims.”
We also learned a bit about the other enemies we’ll be facing under Eramis:
“Eramis’s lieutenants — Atraks, Kridis, Phylaks, Praksis. The highest-ranking and most trusted subjects of the Fallen Kell of Darkness. Skilled Stasis wielders, they are as lethal as they are loyal; potent foes who will stop at nothing to advance Eramis’s cause.”
New Exotics
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Destiny 2: Beyond Light – Official Weapons And Gear Trailer
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As usual, a big part of Destiny 2 is the loot. Beyond Light adds a lot of new gear, with the coolest additions being new Exotics Bungie has detailed ahead of the expansion’s release. There are a few new guns with interesting capabilities, augmented by armor pieces that can give you new abilities. Here’s everything Bungie has detailed:
No Time To Explain – Pulse Rifle
A throwback to Destiny 1, No Time To Explain is a pulse rifle used by the Exo Stranger. It’s not the same gun that players might be familiar with, though. It now refunds ammo when you land precision hits on regular enemies and when you shoot enemies affected by Stasis. Land precision hits on enemies with Stasis and a portal opens to send bullets at your foes from another timeline, increasing your damage.
Cloudstrike – Sniper Rifle
Cloudstrike is an Exotic similar to the Trinity Ghoul bow or Thunderlord machine gun. Landing precision hits causes your enemy to get hit with a lightning strike, while rapid precision hits will trigger a lightning storm on the enemy.
The Lament – Sword
A technologically advanced sword, The Lament charges up power when you activate your sword block ability. When it’s revved up, the sword can decimate enemy energy shields. At its full charge, doing damage with the sword also heals the user.
Salvation’s Grip – Grenade Launcher
Salvation’s Grip is a grenade launcher that fires Stasis crystals, freezing opponents in its blast radius. You can charge the gun up to fire more crystals and increase the radius.
Icefall Mantle – Titan Gauntlets
Titans replace their Barrier abilities with an Overshield when wearing Icefall Mantle, allowing them to absorb more incoming damage.
Precious Scars – Titan Helmet
You get a boost when teammates revive you thanks to Precious Scars, which gives you an Overshield aura when you come back to life that protects both you and your nearby allies.
Mask of Bakris – Hunter Helmet
Your Dodge ability changes while wearing the Mask of Bakris, becoming a Shift ability that covers more ground and temporarily cloaks you when you use it.
Athrys’s Embrace – Hunter Gauntlets
With Athrys’s Embrace, you get a powered-up Weighted Throwing Knife. The knife can ricochet off surfaces twice, and landing rapid precision hits with it increases its damage and can stagger enemies.
Dawn Chorus – Warlock Helmet
Dawn Chorus increases the power of your Daybreak Super projectiles, while also setting enemies on fire for even more pain. You also gain back melee energy whenever the burn deals damage to an enemy.
Necrotic Grip – Warlock Gauntlets
Your melee ability also corrupts enemies when you hit them wearing Necrotic Grip, causing them to take damage over time. Kill a corrupted enemy, and the corruption will spread to nearby enemies while granting you melee energy.