Cool Story, Bro…
The new expansion for Destiny 2 is The Witch Queen. We have had quite a few expansions in the past, and with the newer seasonal content, we’ve been getting more and more story bits. The Witch Queen does not disappoint here. Picking up from some of the story pieces we’ve gotten over the last few seasons, the campaign here is interesting enough to play through. Although I won’t spoil things here, I will say that there are a few twists I didn’t see coming. Whether or not the story is great is not for me to say. What I will say is it is a huge leap from the early days of Destiny. As a “Day 1” player since Destiny for the Xbox 360, I remember vividly the “story” we were given.
Barely crumbs of a story in the original campaign and hard to find lore outside the game made for some unhappy players. Now we are getting proper cutscenes in DLC and major story beats that serve to expand Destiny’s expansive lore. No matter what your feelings are on The Witch Queen, it’s important to remember how far Destiny has come.
Guardian’s Got A Brand New Bag…Er, Glaive
Possibly my favorite thing about expansions/DLC in any game is the new “stuff”. New weapons, armor, treasure, etc. is what I live for with these games. When it comes to Destiny, you have the obligatory new weapons and armor, which is cool, but new weapon types are awesome!
RPGs are all about getting that sweet, sweet loot, and Destiny is no different. Destiny has periodically dropped new weapon types that have change how players build their characters and adapt their playstyle. I absolutely LOVE this! Getting something shiny and new to play around with is like a virtual Christmas morning. From the addition of sidearms to swords, beam rifles to grenade launchers, these new weapons have been a high point of any additions to Destiny. I play all three classes, and my hunter uses exclusively bows. Why? Because I can.
Now, we have the interesting new weapon: the glaive. Basically a long melee weapon that is half handle and half blade, it also shoots in short to mid range. This has been a little difficult to get used to since, unlike the sword, your melee attacks are also first-person. While it makes sense to be first-person since it shoots, I have to say, the actual melee attacks can be a little jarring in the middle of some frantic combat. I also have to point out, my warlock has a sword that fires of blades of energy, and that is entirely third-person. I feel like I would have preferred it to be third person, like the swords, but that is just my opinion. The weapon itself is pretty awesome. Something akin to a gun-blade, it has been fun to play around with.
Some Assembly Required
Destiny stepped it up this time with the addition of weapon crafting. While this isn’t their first foray into “crafting” weapons, it is much better than previous attempts. The crafting system is fairly simple on paper: collect a weapon with a red boarder on its icon, use said weapon to level it up, and eventually you’ll earn the pattern for it. Once you have the pattern, you’ll need to collect the proper materials. Then it’s just a matter of going back to the Enclave and making it. This system allows the player to choose specific types of perks to fit their playstyle. Once you have the weapon, you can use it, level it up, and unlock even more perk options. This makes for a weapons system with an unprecedented (for Destiny) amount of customization.
Also new is the option for some weapons to gain “Deepsight Resonance”. This requires the player to complete a specific task. Once done, the player can take the newly unlocked perk and use it on other compatible weapons. What is great about this, and also a bit annoying, is this encourages you to use weapons you wouldn’t normally use in order to get specific perks. As well as allowing you to further customize your arsenal.
Embrace The Void
Adding to the theme of customization, the new version of the void subclass! I have to admit, when I saw they had made another change to the subclass menu, I was a bit annoyed. I didn’t want to have to learn to navigate yet another subclass change. However, with some experimenting, I was able to change the way I use my hunter entirely.
See, the new subclass menu lets you pick main perks that open slots for secondary perks. My hunter, for instance, now has some of the major perks previously only used by warlocks. There is a perk that works so enemies that are killed with a void ability explode. There is also an ability that lets you become invisible from dodging. Added to that a perk that extends the duration of you invisibility, and makes you invisible when you melee kill an enemy from behind while invisible, and my helmet that makes me invisible for finishing blows and melee ability kills. All these added together mean my hunter can be invisible for quite some time right now, sometimes taking out hordes while invisible the entire time.
It did take some getting used to and some toying around, but I was able to make the new void work for my playstyle, and I’m sure you will also.
Many of us have been anticipating The Witch Queen hoping it would be Destiny 2‘s version of The Taken King DLC that changed everything about the original Destiny from the ground up. I think it’s safe to say this isn’t the same. There are a lot of great things in here, and I am always happy to receive new story content. The addition of a new weapon type, weapon crafting, new take on the void subclass, new destination in Savathun’s throne world, and, as always, new armor and weapons.
So is it worth the price tag? It’s not for me to say, but I can tell you I’ve gotten a lot less DLC on other games for a higher cost. I think the expectation for this was higher than it should have been. That aside, the focus on playing how you want is really apparent here, and for fans of customizing and trying new builds, there is enough here to keep us satiated for quite a while. Once I got over that this isn’t a new The Taken King, I have been having a blast trying new weapons, the glaive, and testing the limits of the void. I definitely recommend The Witch Queen, especially if you like the story/ campaign elements.
