To Destiny players, the moon is a source of singular fascination. In the series’ lore, it’s the home of the Hive, a race of undead aliens and one of the game’s primary antagonists. Their underground Moon fortress, aptly called the Hellmouth, serves as the Hive’s regular base of operations. The Moon hosted key quests in the first Destiny, as well as the game’s second-ever raid. Moreover, the Destiny community has, over the years, embraced the Moon as a renewable source of memery, from soundbites about lunar wizards to speculation that the Moon is, in fact, haunted.
That’s why it’s such a big deal that the game’s latest expansion, Shadowkeep, grants players access to the Moon for the first time since the original Destiny. A mysterious Scarlet Keep awaits, as does a new activity that revolves around fighting Nightmare versions of baddies past. The expansion also introduces a revamped armor system, the return of Artifacts, a new “finishing move” mechanic, and more.
If you’ve never touched a Destiny game before, don’t fear: Now is actually the best possible time to pick up Destiny 2. For starters, it’s gone free-to-play following the release of Shadowkeep, and the reworked base game — called Destiny 2: New Light — introduces several quality-of-life improvements intended to help get beginners caught up. In short, Destiny 2’s opening its arms to both newcomers and Destiny devotees, inviting all to see what the Moon and its shadowy keep have in store.
Thematically, Shadowkeep is all about fear and darkness. At the expansion’s outset, players find themselves beckoned back to the Moon by Eris Morn, a mysterious Guardian who previously assisted the player in defeating the Hive Prince Crota and later his father, Oryx. An expert on the Hive, Eris notifies the player of a terrifying disturbance occurring beneath the surface of the Moon and enlists them to help investigate.
The player soon learns that this disturbance has led to the resurrection of several old foes, familiar faces from across Destiny’s history. Called “Nightmares,” these born-again baddies count Crota and Destiny 2 final boss Dominus Ghaul among their ranks.
This is the central conceit behind Shadowkeep’s new game mode, Nightmare Hunt, which tasks players with confronting these spectres from the Guardian’s past. Shadowkeep ups the ante on these boss fight replays by introducing special modifiers that add various dimensions of challenge\. The mode contains three separate levels of mounting difficulty, each with more modifiers than the last.
Many of the other improvements included in Shadowkeep are a part of Bungie’s larger effort to embrace and enhance Destiny 2’s MMORPG elements. The reworked “Armor 2.0” system is a part of this initiative; it emphasizes stats and customizability, granting players more ownership over their Guardians.
In addition to Mobility, Resistance, and Recovery, the Armor 2.0 system reintroduces the stats Intellect, Discipline, and Strength, each of which affect the cooldown of different abilities. Players can also now augment their armor with mods, which affect everything from weapon reload rates to the availability of specific ammo types. Mods can be stacked or pieced together to suit different playstyles and builds.
These changes effectively allow players to better express themselves through their Guardians. With the mod system, no longer do players have to compromise on their aesthetic preferences in order to wear armor that matches their playstyle; they can simply transfer the mods that are most important to them to the armor that most strikes their fancy on a cosmetic level. It’s a system that gestures towards the flexibility of MMOs, allowing players to feel like their choices are their own.
From fighting games to shooters, there’s little more satisfying than rounding out a victory with a finishing move. These cinematic flourishes can make combat feel more dynamic and alive, the gameplay equivalent of a drum fill or kickflip.
In Destiny 2, players can execute finishing moves on opponents once they’ve depleted their target’s health below a certain threshold. Unlike in other games, however, finishing moves in Destiny 2 aren’t merely cosmetic, but have gameplay benefits, as well, such as generating ammo for the player’s Fireteam.
Both the animations and gameplay effects of finishing moves can be customized separately. It’s a thoughtful new feature that builds upon the creative expression typically afforded by emotes or taunts.
Though Artifacts first made an appearance in the first Destiny, Destiny 2’s Artifacts function much differently. Post-Shadowkeep, Artifacts are now seasonal, granting players abilities and effects that correlate to the thematic content of the game’s current season. One season’s Artifact, for instance, might be perfect for fighting the Vex, while another might be better suited for fighting the Hive.
Players can augment Artifacts with mods and find clever ways to get the most out of the seasonal gear. The mechanic encourages experimentation and creativity, challenging players to connect the dots between the Artifact’s qualities and their intended purpose within the context of the season. Furthermore, the Artifact system allows Bungie the freedom to conduct some experimentation of their own, using each season as an opportunity to test new ideas and synergies between mods and abilities.
Lastly, for anyone intrigued by the above but ultimately unsure what any of it means: Don’t worry. Bungie has redesigned Destiny 2’s base game, now called Destiny 2: New Light, to help beginners get caught up to speed with even the most experienced Destiny vets. On top of that, it’s completely free-to-play — meaning there’s little reason not to try your hand at Destiny 2 if you haven’t already (or haven’t in a long while).
With New Light, new Destiny 2 players begin with a brief tutorial mission that gets them acquainted with the basic mechanics of the game. Upon completing the introduction, players are immediately granted access to the Tower, which serves as the central hub for all Destiny 2 players. This includes Destiny 2’s main campaign, the Curse of Osiris and Warmind story content, all multiplayer modes and maps, and much more.
Players who have gained access to the Tower will also immediately receive an experience boost that bumps up their Power level to 750, which is enough to play alongside more veteran friends. Further Destiny 2 content (such as Forsaken and Shadowkeep) can be purchased à la carte and won’t need to be completed in the chronological order of their release. These are big changes for a game with a long history, but they point toward an exciting future.
Destiny 2: Shadowkeep and New Light are currently available for PC.
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