Destiny has permanently changed the taste of players on PS4 and Xbox One. But now Destiny 2 is in a crisis and can no longer satisfy the hunger it has awakened itself. Which games benefit from this crisis? Which games has Destiny paved the way for success?
When Destiny was released in 2014 on PS4 and Xbox One, Activision marketed it as a shooter. The Halo past of Bungie was pushed to the forefront. Very little information about the MMO mechanics was released before the launch.
Destiny was sold as a shooter but was more
That Luke Smith, a WoW fan who had raided all night and was now designing a raid for Destiny, was at the helm was known to very few at the release. The mechanics were also new to many shooter fans.
Things like
- grind
- an item reset
- a special vendor like Xur
- the hunt for the perfect item with the right stats and perks
- raids and lockouts
- weekly rituals
– all of this was new for many shooter fans on PS4 and Xbox One. Activision apparently had doubts in advance about whether it would even work. The MMO aspects barely played a role in the presentation. But it was precisely those aspects that made the game a success.
Like a Trojan horse, Destiny smuggled disreputable MMO elements into the belly of a beautiful shooter and infected a generation of players on PS4 and Xbox One with them.
Destiny became a lifestyle game for many. A game that could be played every week, that changed and promised untapped potential. Friendships and communities were formed and often lasted for months, even years.
Players long for the “Destiny” flavor
Players developed a taste for it between 2014 and 2017 and longed for more of these elements. Many planned to spend hundreds of hours with Destiny 2. But the successor disappointed. Destiny 2 did not offer the same dynamics and depth as its predecessor.
Even though Destiny 2 entertained for over 80, 90 hours, it is not a worthy substitute for many.
Now that Destiny 2 is in a crisis and cannot satisfy this taste it has awakened, players are longing for alternatives.
We ask ourselves:
- Who are the 5 winners of the great Destiny 2 crisis?
- Which games would have fared worse today if Destiny had never paved the way for them?
Monster Hunter World – Destiny paved the way
What is it? Monster Hunter World is a modernized installment of a cult franchise that has been long at home on handhelds and in Japan. Players hunt dinosaur-like monsters, take them apart, and craft new weapons from their remains to take down even bigger beasts.
What Destiny needs does it satisfy? It is a lifestyle game, one can play it for a long time. It has strong grinding and coop elements. And one can deeply engage with the mechanics of the game, immerse oneself in it, set tasks, and complete them.
How does Monster Hunter World benefit from Destiny and the crisis? Destiny players now have space in their lives for a game they can play for months. For many, that space has been filled by Monster Hunter World since January 2018. Although veterans of the franchise would have surely played and loved the game without Destiny, the fact that Monster Hunter World has such wide reach and is a massive hit is certainly also due to Destiny. It paved the way for Monster Hunter World on PS4 and Xbox One.
On the next page, we continue with a game that many consider the better Destiny.
