With each day, the critical voices of the Guardians grow louder, wishing for a fundamental overhaul of the Crucible in Destiny 2. Particularly in focus: the competitive playlist.
This is how long the Crucible has been in its current form: Since the launch of the major Destiny 2 expansion Forsaken, the Crucible has improved significantly, according to most Guardians.
The matches are faster, abilities recharge quicker, and individual players can again leave their mark on a match.
For four months now, the multiplayer mode has existed in this form. Slowly but surely, the voices of players wishing for changes are growing. Particularly, the competitive playlist is harshly criticized, and the reasons for this are diverse.
What is particularly criticized? Specifically, matchmaking is hotly debated. People hunting for the hand cannon Luna’s Howl often face players who already own the top weapon Not Forgotten.
The reason for this is that with the start of the currently ongoing Season 5, the rank points in the Crucible were reset, leading to Guardians of all skill levels being thrown together as long as they are currently at a similar point level.
It is also criticized that new Guardians must complete a milestone that “forces” them to play two matches in the competitive playlist, which almost always puts the whole team at a disadvantage, as they do not have competitive gear at low levels.
These points lead many players to feel they are not competing against people at a similar skill level.
Is the competitive playlist in Destiny 2 even “competitive”? Opinions on this are greatly divided.
Other games with a ranked mode are significantly more complex. In MOBAs, for example, placement matches are held at the start of a new season to place players in the appropriate league for them.
There are no placement matches in Destiny 2. Every player starts at zero and thus at the same level, regardless of their abilities. This leads to randomness playing a large role in the competitive playlist, despite it theoretically not being present in this form.
This randomness in matchmaking leads to frustration, especially among players who only play the multiplayer mode to complete tasks or milestones. If these players are repeatedly matched with too strong Guardians, the population of the Crucible continues to decline. A vicious cycle.
For the fewer players available, the greater the risk of ending up in games that are hopeless, as in the long run, the stronger players tend to stay engaged. Additionally, the risk of poor connections increases, which could further mar the player experience.
Will we ever be able to choose which mode we want to play again? A major wish of countless Guardians is the direct choice of the preferred game mode, as was possible in Destiny 1.
In Destiny 2, only the Rumble mode can be directly selected; otherwise, it is left to chance whether you will play a Clash or Control match. The reasons for this lie in the player population.
Naturally, the active player count significantly decreases over time. To prevent individual game modes from thinning out too much, Bungie has merged these to ensure quick matchmaking.
The likelihood of this changing is extremely low. However, restructuring of the playlists with other game modes is possible.
Is Bungie planning to overhaul the Crucible? In a detailed post at the beginning of December, Bungie addressed various points of criticism. It is said that first improvements in the Crucible will come by the end of January, although these do not (yet) pertain to matchmaking in the competitive playlist. Bungie did not even mention the option to choose a preferred game mode.
Players will likely have to wait several more months for deep changes. Considering that criticism is already loud and clear, this may be too late for the longevity of the Crucible.
What do you think of the current state of the Crucible in Destiny 2? Do you share the criticism?
