The PvE area of Destiny 2 will change significantly compared to the beta version at release. Many new features have already been made.
In recent days, one topic dominated the global Destiny forums: Is the PvE sacrificed to improve the PvP? Many design decisions have led to a more stable PvP balance, but robbed Guardians of their power in PvE – and thus the fun. The main criticisms: Too little heavy ammo and infrequent and weak abilities (grenades, supers).
The producer Jared Berbach and the beta design lead Rob Engeln address this criticism in “This Week at Bungie.”
The PvE tuning has changed significantly
According to Engeln, the PvE tuning has already changed “very significantly” compared to the beta version. A beta of this size reflects a version of the game that is already months old.
In many cases, they used feedback from beta players to review and confirm changes that were based on internal tests.
Engeln mentions as an example that they noticed that ammo, especially heavy ammo, was too rare in PvE. Therefore, they made adjustments to the drop rates and created a system that guarantees you heavy ammo from certain enemies. This way, power weapons play a more reliable role in your arsenal. Luke Smith recently announced that these changes to the ammo will be available at the launch of Destiny 2 in September.
Additional significant changes have been made to the effectiveness of grenades in PvE, boss health points, and weapon damage against non-player enemies (i.e., against the aliens in PvE).
All of this leads to you becoming more powerful in PvE again and not just having to shoot enemies with primary weapons.
Beta has already been incredibly helpful
They learn a lot from beta feedback about how Destiny 2 will be at launch. It has been incredibly helpful for the development team. Berbach compares it to a plow in front of a train, clearing all the snow from the tracks to clear the way.
In Destiny 2, they use new technologies that still need to be tested. They are checking whether the new server model works. Additionally, they can already evaluate some technical improvements during the beta that you will only see at the launch of the full version.
Ultimately, the beta is there to ensure a smooth launch.
By the way:
- Bungie will soon release an overview with statistics about the beta. What have they learned from it? How many Guardians shared a bubble with Zavala?
- Bungie is aware of the beta issues concerning the “infinite super” glitch and infinite ammo.
