Destiny is enjoying a new patch this week that adds voice chat to the game after it persisted as one of the most requested features since launch.
The game's developer, Bungie, released a blog post on Monday detailing each new bug fix, balance issue, and piece of new content coming with this new update. "Update 1.0.3 provides new social features, revisions to activities, alterations to competitive spaces, adjustments to the player overall experience, as well as a sizable download of new content and geometry to support the first expansion of the world of Destiny," the post states. "The Iron Banner special event is also being updated with new rules and features prior to its second run."
This new patch was released in preparation for Destiny's first expansion, entitled The Dark Below, expected to release on December 9.
Destiny is an online first-person shooter set in a post-apocalyptic 28th century sci-fi universe. While primarily an FPS, the game also incorporates elements from role-playing and massively multiplayer online (MMO) games as well. Bungie labels the game a "shared-world shooter," as its matchmaking system allows players to see other matched players, but not hundreds or thousands more, as in a traditional MMO.
The Dark Below expansion brings the players down beneath the surface of the Moon with new story quests, missions, three new multiplayer arenas, and a new co-op Strike and Raid. New weapons, armor, and gear are included to help boost your character to Light Level 32, as well as the addition of new Exotics, five additional Bounty slots, and much more.
Update 1.0.3 is set to bridge the gap between the current game and this new expansion. Voice chat has been introduced in a beta state to allow users in a team to opt-in to talk to their teammates in Strikes and team-based Crucible matches.
This patch also introduced a new Iron Banner event update that sees the return of Lord Saladin to the Tower with five reputation ranks. Players level 20 or above can lead teams into the event, and any player below level 20 can still enter if led by a level 20-or-higher player.
In player-vs-player, Bungie adjusted the Join In-Progress settings to minimize wait time and enabled revive scoring for Skirmish and Salvage. PvP Medals have been improved and adjusted while maps have been balanced with modified routes, respawn points, and cover layouts.
The rest of the patch notes describe minor bug fixes and game tweaks that are common on a newly launched online game, but you can check out the complete list over at Destiny's official site.
More small patches are expected for the lead-up to The Dark Below, but none as big as this 2.44 GB whopper.
Destiny released on September 9, 2014 on the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One consoles. It has so far enjoyed mainly positive reviews at launch with its main criticism being its disjointed narrative and shallow storyline, according to reviewers. Subsequent broken patches and the infamous "loot cave" that allowed players to discover troves of hidden game-changing items plagued the game at first, but Bungie has worked to correct these issues in the months after launch. Destiny currently has a Metacritic score of 76/100 for the PS4 and 75/100 for the Xbox One.
