Why is the weapon system in Destiny 2 being overhauled?
All information about the weapons can be found in our weapon guide for Destiny 2.
Among the biggest changes in Destiny 2 is the revised weapon system. You’ll notice this immediately when you play the beta of Destiny 2.
So far, weapons in Destiny were categorized into primary weapons, secondary weapons, and heavy weapons. In Destiny 2, there are new categories that you will have to get used to:
- Kinetic weapons: In this slot, you can use all previous types of primary weapons (hand cannon, scout rifle, pulse rifle, and auto rifle) as well as sidearms and the new SMGs. All weapons in this slot deal kinetic damage.
- Energy weapons: This slot includes the same types of weapons as in the kinetic slot. The big difference is: These weapons deal energy or elemental damage (solar, arc, void). Energy weapons are particularly good at destroying enemy shields and eliminating guardians in their active super during PvP.
- Power weapons: This slot contains all weapons that can kill opposing guardians with just one shot. When asked directly which weapons are in this slot, the developers always responded: grenade launchers (new weapon category), rocket launchers, shotguns, snipers, and fusion rifles (with linear fusion rifles). There are no more machine guns. Presumably, the swords are also in the power slot.
How did this change in the weapon system come about?
The game director Luke Smith (via PC Gamer) and project lead Mark Noseworthy (via GameSpot) were asked about the benefits of this change. The answer: There are several advantages.
- According to Noseworthy, the new design encourages you to experiment much more with the weapons and try new things. Because now entirely new combinations are possible. If you really enjoy using scout rifles, you can equip two slots with scout rifles. However, Noseworthy advises against that. Instead, you should also try out other weapons that you haven’t used before. He himself always played with scout rifles in Destiny. But now he can also equip a hand cannon or an auto rifle or whatever, because in case of emergency, he can always switch back to the scout rifle.
- Smith emphasizes another advantage: Since the launch of Destiny in 2014, guardians have loved it when their favorite weapon type received a weapon with elemental damage. As an example, he mentions the Grasp of Malice and the hype surrounding this elemental hand cannon. In Destiny 2, there will be many more of the former primary weapon types – that players spent a lot of time with and will continue to spend time with – that deal elemental damage.
- Additionally, there is an advantage for PvP: All weapons that can kill you with just one shot are now in the power slot. For this, you need power ammo, which becomes regularly available on the battlefield. The innovation is: When you pick up power ammo, every ally and every enemy can see: Who picked up the ammo? For which weapon did they pick it up? And where did they pick it up? On the screen, a message might appear, for example: “Smith has loaded a shotgun in the garden.” This way, everyone knows that Smith is running around with a loaded shotgun and should be prepared for it.
- Whereas in Destiny 1, for example, you could equip a shotgun and a rocket launcher at the same time, you now have to make new decisions with these powerful weapons. Are you more of a shotgun or sniper type? Or do you prefer a grenade launcher instead? If you say: “I am clearly a sniper player,” you have to think about how this choice affects your kinetic and energy slots. This is intended to create “more interesting decisions” for the players.
More information about the weapons:
- Can the same hand cannon drop as a kinetic or energy version? Can you later decide which slot the drop belongs to? No, the weapons are predetermined for the slots. Weapon A will always drop only for the kinetic slot, and weapon B will always drop only for the energy slot. The weapons also have different names.
- The weapons in the power slot will be slightly buffed. They deal more damage than in Destiny 1.
A summary article about the weapons is available: Destiny 2: All information about the weapons – the guardian’s favorite toy
