First Thoughts on Destiny

I used to be bonkers for Halo. But since giving up on Xbox many years ago – getting hit by 3RL three times should be enough reason to quit – I also quit the franchise. I’ll still try and watch when some new content comes out, but I’ve not been able to continue the adventures of the Master Chief since Halo 3.
Too bad, but in my search for a similar experience I picked up Destiny: The Collection. In the same way that I’ve gone from comic book singles collector to trade wait-er, I’ve also gone from trying to play the newest games to waiting around for GOTY sets and cheaper deals.
Destiny isn’t too shabby. It gives me the Halo fix, but packs in some fantastic lore and a lot of RPG elements that keep me hooked. And when I say hooked I mean maybe dropping 3–4 hours every time I sit down with it. I’ve had to time my activities and make sure I complete things before turning on the PS4, because once I fire this game up, I’m gone.
What’s great is it takes sci fi settings and weaponry, and then it blends it all with fantasy and magic and a narrative that’s more in the vein of Game of Thrones than a traditional sci-fi piece. The character classes are based on our traditional fantasy tropes (warrior, rogue, wizard) and they draw from that while building really cool tech on top of it. The game’s effort to build a mythology where this all comes together is commendable, and it really adds to the experience.
The core experience though is the gunplay, and it’s what you would expect from Bungie. It’s visceral and exciting, it creates that dopamine loop of combat, sustaining the excitement with some dramatic music and escalating challenges. My major gripe is the action skills usually take too long to recharge, like the grenade taking so long. And the special, man that takes a while. As you level up, it goes quicker, but not by that much. This gets fixed a little in Destiny 2, but remains a sticking point.
All in all though Destiny is a great gaming experience with awesome gunplay and engaging lore.
