The time has come. Destiny, one of the most anticipated new IP’s in recent memory, has arrived.
Created by the team at Bungie, and backed by publisher Activision, Destiny promises a ten-year plan for its new franchise. Ten years is a long time, and you’ll want to start strong if you hope to have any chance for survival. To that end, here’s a few things you’ll need to know to get started.
Destiny was lovingly crafted by the developers at Bungie, who you’ll recall as being the team behind Halo. After selling the Halo license to Microsoft’s 343 Industries, Bungie was keen to start working on its next big thing.
Destiny, however, is definitely not Halo. That being said, it’s difficult to avoid drawing comparisons, and you’ll no doubt see some striking similarities between the two.
Here’s what you need to know about the world of Destiny.
The Traveler’s arrival marked the golden age of mankind. Interplanetary travel and colonization sent the human race decades into the future. However, The Traveler had an enemy, The Darkness.
There have been many great battles, and now all hope seems lost. You are a Guardian; a super-human soldier blessed with gifts from the Traveler. You’re the last best hope for humanity.
There are three main classes in Destiny, each with their own unique subclasses.
The Titan is a brutal melee tank class designed to take additional damage, while dealing some damage of its own with a powerful slam ability.
The Hunter is the ranged class, specializing in taking out enemies from a distance with a sniper rifle. Once at close range, the Hunter has the ability to decimate enemies with a fiery golden pistol.
Finally, the Warlock is your close-quarters-combat build, specializing in fusion rifles and shotguns. Once charged, the Warlock has the ability to launch into the air and unleash a Nova Bomb that rips enemies to shreds
While the core gameplay of Destiny is that of a first-person-shooter, there are so many more elements to the experience.
Destiny is an MMO, a massively multiplayer online game, which means it has a persistent online world. Even if you choose to play solo, you’ll see other players from around the world attempting the same missions and killing the same enemies at the same time.
Trying your hand at the patrol missions, for example, means a possibility of public events which will require more than one person for any chance of success.
As such, Destiny is designed to be played with other people. Most story missions allow a fireteam of up to three people, ideally one of each class. Venturing into the Crucible presents many of the standard modes anyone who’s played a modern shooter would be accustomed to. All of this is designed to grant you the maximum amount of experience and hone your skills to lethal perfection.
Destiny requires Xbox Live Gold ($59.99/year) or Playstation Plus ($49.99/year), depending on your console.
While you’ll still be able to complete story missions solo, you won’t be able to play with friends or enter the Crucible unless you’ve paid for your respective console’s subscription service.
You’ll also need to make sure you have an actual hard drive and some space on your console. Destiny requires around 40GB (18GB final install) of space on the Xbox One and Playstation 4, and around 20GB (7.4GB final install) on the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.
