In Destiny 2, the last major downtime before Witch Queen is approaching, before players will start in Witch Queen and the new Season 16. MeinMMO will continuously accompany the server downtime and will also inform you in advance about the exact times.
Tomorrow evening it will finally happen. The latest expansion of Destiny 2 is starting and players have really had to wait a long time for it. Witch Queen will pay off narrative threads that date back to the first Destiny and “The Taken King”. However, before you can start in Season 16 to thwart Savathun’s plan, there will still be a server downtime.
7:30 PM: Content creators are already showing the first Witch Queen gameplay. We hope you could also log in and test your Guardian’s new movements. Visually, the “Witch Queen” expansion has also given Destiny 2 a new look. First “blueberries” sighted while leveling!
7:25 PM: Hardly in the game, players have already discovered an interesting weapon in Witch Queen through the collection. Is this maybe the new raid weapon, which actually shouldn’t be online yet? What do you think?
7:09 PM: Bungie keeps their word and ensures a surprisingly swift login into the game. More and more players can log in, and our Destiny 2 authors have already made it into the game. How about you?
7:00 PM: The maintenance of Destiny 2 is complete. Bungie’s community manager dmg04 reports that logins for Witch Queen are going smoothly. More and more players are able to log in. Bungie is monitoring all charts to ensure a stable experience. It looks like many players can already enter at the start of the new expansion on the first evening.
6:50 PM: Has something changed in performance? Players report that Destiny 2: Witch Queen runs smoother and looks cool. And the Hunters among you can now even slide “backwards”.
6:40 PM: After logging in, you will be greeted by a cutscene. We won’t reveal more. Afterwards, these tasks await you in the first week of Witch Queen: Destiny 2: Weekly Reset on February 22 – Welcome to the Witch Queen’s Court
6:30 PM: The first Guardians have successfully logged in and reached the Throne World. Logins are proceeding quickly, and while queues are present, Bungie has everything under control.
Feel free to look around in the Tower, we are receiving reports that the Vanguard has completed renovation work here. Additionally, a Cabal ship has docked in the hangar.
Another reminder for all PS4 players: You should now be able to start the download. Previously, Bungie reported an error here, which caused this delay. We still hope everything goes smoothly now.
6:20 PM: Important note from Bungie’s community manager dmg04. All Guardians are asked not to leave the queue, as you will lose your place in line otherwise. Bungie ensures that more Guardians can log in with every second.
6:00 PM: Ready to go! The first Guardians have already attempted to log in to have their audience with the Queen. Unfortunately, the servers are still overloaded. Expect queues, as 1 million other Guardians want to do the same.
5:45 PM: Only 15 minutes left and then the servers should be available again. We are curious if everything goes smoothly.
5:10 PM: The patch notes for update 4.0.0.1 have been released. A lot to read, but we have summarized the most important details for you.
4:00 PM: Bungie has just released a new trailer for Season 16 “Season of the Risen”. We will embed the video below the update box. What do you think of the new impressions that Guardians are now fighting side by side with the Cabal?
12:00 PM: PS4 players are “not amused” about the fact that they will clearly be the last in line at the start of Witch Queen. Are you affected?
9:00 AM: On Twitter, Bungie has already informed players to expect wait times ahead of the release. However, they will do everything to get you into the game as quickly as possible. (Community manager dmg04 via twitter)
Prior to that, some known issues for entering the game have been disclosed. We have added this information further down in the article, in the patch notes.
8:30 AM: On PC, the download is 22.07 GB. For PS5, it is 18.995 GB (version number 1.037.000). But even if you have downloaded the update, you can officially only play from tonight at 6 PM, if everything goes well.
8:21 AM: Bungie is reporting an issue with the preload for Playstation. It has now been announced on Twitter that the download will start at 6 PM for Sony console players. The download will have 72 GB specifically for PS4 players.
Check out the latest trailer for Destiny 2 – Witch Queen and the new “Season of the Risen” here, if you still have to wait in line.
What you need to know today: There will first be a “server down” that will start in Germany on February 22 at 04:00 AM. Afterwards, the servers of Bungie will be offline for a full 14 hours. So you won’t be able to play Destiny 2 until the evening.
But don’t worry, there will be a preload so that you can download the new content of the new DLC Witch Queen and the upcoming Season 16 during the server downtime. So you should be ready to go at the start.
When does the preload start exactly? The preload for Witch Queen will be available on February 22 at 04:00 AM on all platforms. How much storage space update 4.0.0.1 will require is not yet known.
Before that, there will also be a longer downtime for Destiny 2. Bungie is currently planning for just over 14 hours, which you should also take into account.
MeinMMO will update this article throughout the evening to keep you informed.
Maintenance on February 22 – All Times and Server Downtime
These times are important for Witch Queen:
- On Tuesday, February 22, the servers will be taken offline at 03:45 AM. You will not be able to log in and some services on Bungie.net will also be unavailable.
- From 04:00 AM on February 22, the preview for Witch Queen and the update 4.0.0.1 will be available on all platforms.
- It is planned that the Destiny 2 servers will go online again on February 22 at 06:00 PM. If everything goes well, you will be able to play the update 4.0.0.1 on all platforms and regions afterwards. The new expansion will then go live.
- On February 22 at 07:00 PM, the maintenance of Destiny 2 is expected to be completed.
It is important: Even if you have downloaded the update, there may be connection issues until the end of the maintenance work around 07:00 PM. Bungie has already pointed out on Twitter that the API will be offline for a while on launch day, which limits the ability to transfer items via the companion app or other third-party apps. So it’s best to plan ahead today and equip your favorite weapons on the character you want to start with in Witch Queen.
You should also expect that times may change again and that there may also be login queues.
Information for PS4 players: Bungie also pointed out that players who play the PS4 version of Destiny 2 must download all required Destiny 2 content before they can play The Witch Queen. Earlier today, an error occurred that caused additional problems for PS4 players.
What Changes with Update 4.0.0.1 in Season 16
This is what the update brings today: In advance, Bungie has already given a preview of the changes through update 4.0.0.1 (via Bungie.net).
This was announced in advance:
- Weapon crafting will be available. You can shape your Godroll yourself.
- 40 new Legendary weapons and eight Exotics will come into the game.
- Additionally, Witch Queen will have six new armor Exotics.
- The Witch Queen brings a classic and legendary campaign into the game.
- Seasonal armor with high stats will be reintroduced in the season pass.
- Eternity and Vostok are returning to the Crucible.
- Adjustments to the PvEvP mode Gambit.
- With Void 3.0, you will use the first light class with fragments and aspects.
- New enemies “The Radiant Brood” and a Hive Ghost of the Guardians called “fluorescent flea bags”.
- Improved “onboarding” for new players via the New Light entry.
- In addition, there are general “quality of life” adjustments and bug fixes.
UPDATE: These problems are already known at the launch of Witch Queen:
- Season passes will be applied, platform-dependently, to the first characters that log in.
- The recommended power level for the “PsiOps Battlegrounds” playlist will not be displayed at the start of the activity. However, the recommended power is 1500.
- Artifact mods for overload (auto rifle and submachine gun) do not successfully interrupt the health regeneration of overload champions after a stun.
- There may be missing related symbols for certain player buffs and debuffs.
- Enemies with the instability debuff (Void 3.0) may not count towards loot progress when defeated with area damage.
- Opening the character screen on Xbox consoles with a full inventory can lead to a significant drop in frame rate.
- Glaive melee kills do not count towards kill tracker progress and certain melee-triggered perks.
- Certain ghost tracking mods do not show target materials or chest locations when you explore the new Throne World this evening.
Patch Notes for Hotfix 4.0.0.1 in Destiny 2
What is in the patch notes? What further changes will be made will be published by Bungie in the official patch notes. These should likely be released on the evening of February 22.
Are you excited that it’s finally happening? How do you personally start the new DLC? Feel free to let us know what your clans or friends have planned for the start. Or are you completely relaxed, trying not to get spoiled, and planning to really dive into Witch Queen on Wednesday?
