Destiny 2 has received its next-gen upgrade on the new consoles PlayStation 5, as well as Xbox Series X and S. Shooter expert Sven Galitzki from MeinMMO had high hopes for the update. Now, to his own surprise, he is actually really excited.
What is the Next-Gen Upgrade all about? On December 8, Bungie released the new Update 3.0.1 for Destiny 2. This included not only some fixes and changes for the action MMO but also brought the Next-Gen Upgrade for the new console generation from Sony and Microsoft – that is for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S.
The update was eagerly anticipated by many who had already been able to buy a new console – despite all the issues.
This is supposed to make Destiny 2 run better on the next-gen platforms and ultimately allow the game to benefit fully from the new technical possibilities of the fresh hardware, according to the studio.
What’s included in the Next-Gen Upgrade for PS5, Xbox Series X, and S
I, Sven Galitzki from MeinMMO, have been looking forward to this update for the past few weeks and wanted to quickly get my own impression of how Destiny 2 actually performs on PlayStation 5. Because before, the game was only running via the backward compatibility of the PS5, which I already felt wassmoother and notably faster than on the PS4 Pro.
I was all the more excited about the full capabilities on the new platform, as it includes some major wishes of the console community – for instance, more FPS and a FoV slider.
What changes specifically on Next-Gen consoles with the update? In short: The upgrade brings the following features to the new platforms:
- True 4K resolution on PS5 and Xbox Series X (Full HD on Xbox Series S)
- 60 FPS on all consoles and 120 FPS for PS5 and Xbox Series X in PvP
- a FoV slider, meaning an option to adjust the field of view
For more information about the Next-Gen Upgrade, check this out: Upgrade for PS5 & Xbox Series X coming in December – What’s included
After the Next-Gen Upgrade, I feel newly in love
Just a quick note: I’m not really a hardware junkie. Things like 60 FPS or 4K resolution have always been secondary for me; the game itself takes precedence. And I always told myself I love Destiny for other reasons. But I was completely wrong …
Until now, all of these things like 60 FPS or 4K had felt like they were out of reach for me as a console player. I was admittedly really excited and had high hopes for the update – even though a certain level of skepticism remained. Because anyone who actively follows Destiny 2 knows what updates mean for Destiny 2 – especially recently…
Things don’t always go smoothly, and that’s a gentle way of putting it..
I expected the worst and was pleasantly surprised
How does it all look in practice? It’s said that if you set your expectations too high for something, you often end up even more disappointed. That’s what I feared this time, but luckily I was wrong.
And I don’t want to beat around the bush anymore: Destiny 2 looks and runs simply fantastic on PS5 after the Next-Gen Upgrade. I’m actually pleasantly surprised, almost overwhelmed.
In 4K (assuming the corresponding TV or monitor) the game looks razor-sharp – even up close, there are no pixels or rough edges to be seen. Everything is crisper, somehow more vibrant. The game already looked good in compatibility mode, but now it’s truly a feast for the eyes.
The 60 FPS also make a significant difference (And yes, you can really see the difference right away!). Everything that is moving feels much smoother, more dynamic, and is elegantly highlighted by the static elements. Every control input now feels more precise to me as well.
At times, Destiny 2 now feels like a completely new game or at least a completely new experience – especially in PvP. I really had to get used to it for quite a while – perhaps due to the 120 FPS.
What was already noticeably better compared to the PS4 Pro: the loading times. These have reportedly improved significantly with the upgrade and are now even shorter. For example: I went from the PS5 main menu to the ETZ on Earth in just under 90 seconds. It was a bit slower in compatibility mode, and on the PS4 Pro, I rarely got beyond character selection in that time even with an SSD.
And for some, it seems to run even faster – though apparently also towards Europe:
The only negative so far – but that is highly subjective: When adjusting the FoV angle, my excitement did hit a limit. Because I still haven’t found the right value for me beyond the standard 75 degrees and almost had a crisis with every setting because it felt so unusual in conjunction with all the other new features. I still need to play around with it a bit.
By the way, after the update, I heard my PS5’s fan for the first time ever – that was never the case before the update. But it’s still far from loud and not even close to the “propeller drive” of my old PS4 Pro.
In summary: The Next-Gen Upgrade has truly earned its name in Destiny 2. The difference to last-gen is huge. But even compared to compatibility mode on the PS5, there is a significant visible and tangible difference. I can thus clearly answer the question of how Destiny 2 runs on PS5 with “YES!”.
Joking aside: If you, as a Destiny 2 player, still don’t have a PS5 or any next-gen console yet, but want to get one: You can really look forward to a great experience. It’s not a new game, there are no new contents. But it’s definitely a completely different, completely new experience if you have never played Destiny 2 in this quality before.
For PC gamers, this may now seem laughable, as they already know all of this, it’s nothing special for them. But as a console player, I can honestly say that with this update, I completely fell in love with the game anew and enjoy even old or familiar content so much more. At least for the moment. Because people tend to get used to good things quickly, and who knows how long these “honeymoon” feelings will last.
What have your experiences been after the Next-Gen Update? I’ve only been able to experience the Next-Gen Upgrade on the PS5 myself, so unfortunately I can only report unilaterally from my own experience. But how does it look on the Xbox Series X and Series S? And what are your own experiences on PlayStation 5? Please share with us and other readers of MeinMMO in the comments.
By the way, besides the Next-Gen Upgrade, Bungie’s action MMO still has a lot to offer until the end of the year: Destiny 2 in December – These contents are awaiting you until 2021
