Finally, the time has come! Destiny 2 announces the new expansion “Shadowkeep” for fall 2019 and reveals the plans for year 3. Here are the key details.
Many fans have been eagerly awaiting this: Today, June 6, Bungie has revealed more about the future of Destiny 2 as promised. After a long silence, Guardians finally know what to expect starting fall 2019.
The new expansion for Destiny 2, Shadowkeep, has been introduced by the studio in a new trailer. You can watch it here:
Some details had already leaked: Prior to today’s reveal, numerous leaks had occurred. There were rumors, among other things
- that the new expansion is called Shadowkeep, will offer cross-save, and will appear on Google Stadia
- that Destiny 2 will be free-to-play and will come to Steam
- as well as regarding the release date of the new expansion and the story surrounding the Hive and Eris Morn
All these rumors and leaks have now been confirmed. We summarize the key points for the roadmap of Destiny 2.
What’s next for Destiny 2 starting fall 2019
The third year will kick off with the new expansion Shadowkeep in fall 2019 and will be defined by a completely new vision of Destiny 2.
- Destiny 2 is expected to be a cool action MMO – with more customization options, more RPG elements, and better social features
- Destiny 2 will be a single world that constantly evolves – like the death of Riven when the curse of the Taken fell over the Dreaming City
- Players should be able to access Destiny 2 anywhere and without barriers. Google Stadia, cross-save, and free-to-play are crucial for this
Only Bungie and the players should determine how the game will proceed – and nobody else. Below are more details on how Bungie wants to implement this vision.
What’s included in the new fall expansion “Shadowkeep”
What is the name of the expansion? The new expansion is officially called Shadowkeep. The German name is Festung der Schatten.
When is the expansion “Shadowkeep” releasing? Shadowkeep will release on October 1 for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Additionally, Destiny 2 and Shadowkeep are set to be playable on Google Stadia. However, a specific date for this is not yet available.
What is it about? For the Guardians, it’s the first time since Destiny 1 that they return to the Moon. However, it looks entirely different from the first visit.
There, they will encounter the missing Eris Morn, with whom they will travel to a mysterious citadel and face horrific “Shadows” and “Nightmares” before humanity plunges into an age of darkness again. This involves a reawakened force of the Hive along with new units.
But it’s not just about the Hive; it’s about something even more terrifying that has awakened deep within the Hellmouth.
What’s included in the expansion?
- For Shadowkeep, none of the previous Destiny 2 expansions are required. It is a standalone add-on. Guardians should be able to dive directly into the new year 3 content
- More customization options
- A type of transmog system is set to come. You will be able to customize stats and mods for the armor that visually appeals to you
- New quests and missions
- New destination: The Moon
- New items, weapons, and armor
- New exotics
- New raid in the Garden of Salvation
- Another dungeon
- A cool new feature: Unique finishing moves for each class!
What else to expect in year 3 of Destiny 2
New seasons will be standalone: Just like the Shadowkeep expansion, the upcoming seasons for Destiny 2 will be independent from one another and can all be purchased separately. If you don’t like the content of a particular season, you can simply skip it.
Destiny 2 will go free-to-play with “New Light”: The shooter will be partially playable without further costs starting October 1. This applies to the base game of Destiny 2 as well as all year 1 content, including the expansions “Curse of Osiris” and “Warmind”. Moreover, all worlds (for patrol), all strikes, all PvP maps, all year 1 raids, and the Gambit mode will be free to play.
The introduction for newly created Guardians will then take place in a sort of remastered version of the first mission from Destiny 1 in the Cosmodrome on Earth. Only after that will the fresh players enter the Tower of Destiny 2, where the previous story of the game will begin for them.
Additional content, like the Forsaken expansion or the new Shadowkeep, will still be paid and can be optionally purchased.
This new and free entry opportunity in Destiny 2 will be called “Destiny 2: New Light”.
No more PS4-exclusive content: The unpopular exclusivity for Sony’s PS4 from the times of Activision has finally come to an end. The PlayStation 4 will no longer be favored. All platforms will receive all new content simultaneously.
Cross-save starting fall 2019: Cross-save feature for Destiny 2 between PC, Xbox One, PS4, and Google Stadia. So the PS4 will also be supported in Cross-save contradicting some rumors.
The PC version of Destiny 2 comes to Steam: Destiny 2 will switch from Battle.net on PC to Steam and will be exclusively available there starting October 1. And don’t worry, all your characters will be transferred for free to the new platform – along with progression and your previous purchases.
Destiny 2 on Google Stadia: Destiny 2 will be playable on Google’s gaming platform Stadia starting fall 2019 – on any PC and device with Google Chrome that supports this feature. Destiny 2 is expected to be one of the launch titles for Google’s game streaming service.
What Bungie has to say about its new vision for Destiny 2 can be found in this ViDoc with developer comments:
But it’s still a while until fall. And currently, Season 7 has just begun in Destiny 2. You can find all info on it here:
