Destiny 2 Shadowkeep is coming soon. Some fans are increasingly skeptical about the major autumn expansion. The biggest criticism for many is the so-called content recycling. However, in the eyes of our author Sven, this is not necessarily a bad thing, and there is still enough new content to look forward to.
What is Shadowkeep? Shadowkeep, or Fortress of Shadows, is the new major autumn expansion for Destiny 2, set to be released on October 1, 2019. The add-on is expected to usher in a new era for Destiny 2. It comes hand in hand with an update that overhauls some mechanics, such as the armor system, and introduces fresh elements like Finishing Moves as well as new content into the game.
You can find everything you need to know about Shadowkeep here: All about Destiny 2: Shadowkeep – Release, Pre-order, and Features
What is the source of skepticism? Less than a month remains until the release. More and more details about Shadowkeep are becoming known – whether through official channels or through gameplay leaks from the PAX West fair, where Destiny 2 along with some new content could be played.
What makes many guardians increasingly skeptical: Many new contents coming with Shadowkeep and the update are not really new. Much of it is already known to the guardians from Destiny 1 or Destiny 2. A lot is being recycled, and this annoys the fans.
The real innovations and changes are said to be rather limited – this is currently the general sentiment of many guardians who express their frustration and anger about this situation on Reddit and other platforms. A popular thread on Reddit about this topic received over 6,600 upvotes in just about 15 hours.
What is being reused? The Reddit post vigorously debates content recycling, and guardians list numerous examples where Bungie is using old content. Here are some of them:
- For example, 2 new PvP maps – both come from Destiny 1
- The planetary vendors are not receiving any new weapons or armor and thus remain at the level of Year 1. The available armor pieces will simply be adjusted to the new system Armor 2.0, but are not new themselves
- The Moon is introduced as a new location. However, this comes from Destiny 1 and, despite the new areas, is familiar content for many guardians
- What recently caused much frustration and displeasure: The armor from the new Shadowkeep raid is essentially reskins of the Omega Mechanos sets from Year 1
- The Glimmer Engrams from the Eververse will not receive new content but will include “The Best of Year 2” – basically only old content
- The nightmares from the new Shadowkeep activity Nightmare Hunt are known bosses from Destiny 1, such as Crota or Skolas
Why I don’t think it’s bad: When looking at the examples, the fans are not wrong. That Shadowkeep indeed utilizes many existing or known resources cannot be denied. But is this really that bad? At least not for me.
Yes, the PvP maps are already known. But both Widow’s Court and the Duskfall were among the most popular maps in Destiny 1 for many players and should therefore be well-received in Destiny 2.
Yes, the planetary vendors keep their old gear, but it will be updated to new standards. And that’s exactly what many fans wanted.
How many times has the community asked Bungie to make all the Year 1 armors useful again? Because Destiny 2 has a lot of cool armor sets, most of which have become obsolete since they were not updated to the then-new system post Forsaken.
The Moon is also already familiar to many. But this location was very popular in Destiny 1 and remains one of my personal highlights to this day. Moreover, this location has been expanded and enhanced with new areas and activities. So as a veteran who has known the Moon since the beta, I am excited and can hardly wait to rediscover this location.
I am also grateful for any additional planets in Destiny 2. Even if Bungie were to bring back all planets in addition to the existing ones, I would not be unhappy. And I believe I am not alone in this.
I also don’t find the reskins of the raid armor as well as the reuse of some iconic bosses from Destiny 1 bad – on the contrary. I personally liked the Omega Mechanos sets, and what I have seen of the reskins so far seems coherent. The sets have been visually enhanced and are definitely a valuable addition to the loot pool in my view.
What’s new: But even if others see the recycling differently than I do – Shadowkeep and the accompanying update still provide plenty of new content to look forward to as a player.
- The new armor system Armor 2.0, which takes the game further in the direction of RPG.
- Nightmare Hunt, a new activity on the Moon
- New story surrounding the Moon and Eris Morn
- 2 new strikes
- Completely new areas on the Moon
- New raid
- The seasonal artifacts, which should provide additional gameplay depth with their mods
- Elimination mode in PvP
- New weapons, armors, and more
That’s why I’m looking forward to Shadowkeep: In short: Yes, recycling is debatable. Not everyone is a fan, and I can understand the displeasure of many guardians. For me, it always depends on how it is implemented and how old and new content relate to each other. And with Shadowkeep, I am quite optimistic about that so far.
And ultimately, I learned one thing in my guardian career: no matter how good or bad the content may seem beforehand – I will only pass my final judgment after I have played it thoroughly and made my own picture of it.
If all those “old” resources are coherently integrated and implemented with high quality, as well as being fun in combination with the new and additional content, I see no real reason to condemn Bungie for its first major work after separating from Activision.
What do you think? Are you tired of recycling? Or can you live with it if it’s well done? Are you looking forward to Shadowkeep?
