The Niobe Lab, another content from the Black Armory, is live in Destiny 2 and is causing heated debates within the community with its complex puzzle. What is going on?
In Destiny 2, with the Weekly Reset on January 8, the Niobe Lab started as announced. However, there was a catch with the new content. To successfully complete the event and thus unlock the fourth and final forge of the Black Armory, Bergusia, a complex puzzle must be solved.
That’s why the Niobe Lab is being discussed controversially
Here’s how the Niobe Lab started: The puzzle that comes with the Niobe Lab was an unexpected twist. Many fans expected a kind of dungeon activity or a mission. However, upon the release of the new content, Bungie announced the puzzle that must be solved.
What is the problem with the Niobe Lab? Nevertheless, many eager players set out to try to unveil the secret. However, after more than 12 hours, the initial excitement has waned and frustration is increasingly spreading among the fans.
A major problem of the Niobe Lab is the complexity of the puzzle. While Guardians progress through now 6 levels of the “Niobe’s Torment” mission, they must decipher certain messages and enter codes to reach the next level. Many of these codes are complexly encrypted and require additional information that is not present in the game.
How is the community involved? If you are not among the most passionate puzzle solvers in the community like Datto, Teawrex, Esoterickk, or Gladd, you can hardly engage with this complex riddle and correspondingly contribute little or nothing at all. The riddle clearly targets the brightest minds in the community, but even they are slowly becoming frustrated with the puzzle and losing interest.
And for the rest, which feels like 99% of the players, there is nothing left to do but wait for the riddle to be solved and play old content in the meantime.
The riddle itself would probably not be nearly as problematic if it did not exclude players from the new content they have paid for. Many Guardians assumed that they would be able to dive into the new content directly with the reset. However, this was not the case. Solving the riddle is mandatory to unlock the new Bergusia forge – even if you are not interested in the puzzle.
The community enjoys puzzling along: Generally, puzzles and mysteries are very popular in Destiny. And this is not the first time players have to solve a riddle in Destiny. However, it is the first time a riddle completely excludes players from new content.
The Black Spindle, the Outbreak Prime, the Whisper of the Worm, the Shattered Throne – all these riddles came at a time when players had plenty of other fresh content to enjoy. However, the Niobe Lab and the forges are currently the only new content announced for yesterday, and players cannot access it, as the still unsolved puzzle is keeping them away.
This is how the riddle divides the fans: Currently, discussions are not just focused on trying to solve the puzzle on Reddit but also heating up discussions around it. There are numerous fans who defend the riddle and remind that the community has wished for more mysteries and puzzles for Destiny 2. Bungie is now delivering this.
However, the vast majority of fans feel that Bungie has gone too far this time. The Niobe Labs were announced as a content drop, and most expected to be able to jump right into the new content. Now, 99% of players have to wait until the smartest minds solve the riddle before they can finally play something new. Most had envisioned it differently and are far from happy with the situation.
What do you think of the riddle? A cool event that is unfairly criticized, or has Bungie chosen the wrong approach this time?
