In the MMO shooter Destiny , the DLC “House of Wolves” was released a few weeks ago. Will it bore players faster than Darkness Lies?
It’s something like background noise that can be heard: House of Wolves is better than “Darkness Lies”, but you can also get through it faster and end up playing less. Due to changes in item mechanics, there are “fewer” special weapons or armor that players desire. Most have their “favorite weapons” already and can upgrade them to the new maximum values thanks to Etheric Light.
You reach the max level faster and there is no raid – why play anymore?
A lengthy grind to the max level is also eliminated: Back in Darkness Lies, you had to raid heavily and regularly to reach the max level. You needed 63 radiant shards to upgrade the raid armor enough to reach Light Level 32. Today, it’s different: With 3 etheric lights, anyone can bring any legendary armor to the new maximum value. One exotic piece of armor too and the Guardian is at the limit.
With the increased emphasis on PvP and the absence of a raid, many feel that “House of Wolves” has less potential for prolonged play.
Is that really the case? Is Bungie already noticing a decline in players? No, says Bungie’s statistician on reddit. However, this statement is now 11 days old. It dates back to the end of June.
House of Wolves was played even more in the first month than “Darkness Lies”
The account “Bungie User Research,” associated with Bungie, explained on reddit that players “HAVE PLAYED A LOT” of Destiny in the first month after House of Wolves was released. Even more than during “Darkness Lies,” and in some respects even more than at launch of the actual game last September.
In the last weeks of June, the number of hours invested by players has declined somewhat and is now closer to normal. The hours still remain above average, but “now they aren’t skipping Grandma’s birthday just to kill Skolas again.”
If you look at the numbers of players logging in daily, there hasn’t been a mass exodus. During the week of May 19, there was a significant spike, since then the player numbers have declined a bit, but not noticeably. The figures suggest that House of Wolves is doing a very good job of keeping players engaged.
And these are not just newcomers: The overwhelming majority of day-one players who were active at the launch of House of Wolves have also played in the last week of June.
In September, it continues
My MMO states: These are interesting numbers that align with player statements. In the first weeks, the impression created by the new story and the Prison of Elders was that there was much more to do than ever before: “How am I supposed to accomplish all of this?” was often lamented.
However, after a few weeks, a disillusionment set in, particularly among frequent players who place a high value on their loot: “What? That’s all? The same thing keeps coming up in the Prison of Elders? Why should I do this, I don’t need any more weapons. It’s not worth it anymore.”
On the other hand, PvP players found a significantly increased incentive to go into the Crucible with House of Wolves. Rewards have been improved, with the Trials of Osiris also introducing special gear for them. This may have led to an increase in playing hours there and also converted some “only PvE players,” ensuring that despite the lack of a raid, they still spend some hours in Destiny.
Nevertheless, a trend is emerging that “House of Wolves” is front-heavy, with a lot of playtime at the beginning of the expansion and a more significant decline already after the first weeks compared to “Darkness Lies.” But to say that definitively, we would need the numbers from the ongoing July and August. And it seems unlikely that we will ever get them.
However, it seems Bungie anticipated that the “House of Wolves” DLC would fade relatively quickly. The next major expansion is already announced for September: King of the Possessed. So if there is a “dry spell,” it is likely to be quite short.
