It was rumored that Bungie would have some new DLC available for Destiny sometime after the last DLC pack "House of Wolves" was released, and at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (also known as E3, a big video game event held annually at the LA Convention Center, the company announced The Taken King. The release date and price have created a controversy amongst the game's players, and it has led many to wonder what is in store for Destiny 2.
According to IGN and a trailer for the expansion pack, it is revealed that "The Taken King" is Oryz, the father of Crota, a Destiny raid boss that players worldwide have already defeated. The DLC plans to offer a new subclass and new elemental super ability for each of the three character classes as warlocks will get an electrical storm, hunters will receive a gravity bow, and Titans will receive a flaming hammer.
It has been revealed that PS4 players will have exclusive access to one cooperative Strike mission, as well as exclusive gear. Sony has a contract where their system gets access to features first.
There has been a recent controversy as there were many grievances after the announcement of "The Taken King". Apparently, it was announced that "The Taken King" will sell for $40, which is very high for a DLC. In comparison, those that bought the DLC pack "The Dark Below" paid $20, and an additional $20 for "House of Wolves", or a combined pack for $35 with the Expansion pass.
There was also some confusion about Bungie had stated at E3 that new exclusive DLC was only available with the Collector's edition of the game. As it turns out, Bungie explained that existing players can get the new items by paying $20 for an upgrade bundle, according to Engadget, in an article appropriately titled: "Bungie apologizes to Destiny players by selling them stuff". Then there was the whole Red Bull advertising campaign that was satirized so well by Dying Light.
Forbes has said that the aggravated players are essentially a minority, and for the most part, players are enjoying Bungie's game and not having a unanimous revolt. It might be too soon to talk about Destiny 2, but we have heard a lot about it. Venture Capital Post confirms that the next installment of the game is currently underway, from a statement from Activtion's CEO Eric Hirshberg. Gamespot also reported in November of last year that Activation Publishing has a ten-year plan for the game's storyline. This means that a Destiny 2, or whatever they will call it, is just one step in a massive storyline that has a long-term plan. An Activation representative still don't have anything to respond as far as the storyline is concerned, but the Latino Post states that this is underway.
Gamespot has reported that Destiny has about 9.5 million registered users, and that users of the game often play the game an average of more than three hours per day. The game is an MMO (massively multiplayer online) type, but the company is avoiding that term but accepts the description of "shared-world shooter". I suppose the only thing left to do is to franchise this even more, and I can't help if there are plans to have a Destiny television series like Halo plans to have.
David Dague has also stated months ago that players have a relationship with their characters, and the "carry-over" feature will help nurture that. Dague has also seen the concept art for the sequel and the new exotic weapons, and is pretty optimistic of the sequel. As far as I can remember, they "carry-over" feature is a request from fans, and I am not certain if there is any other video game franchise that does this kind of character development. Not only will this sequel offer some new and exotic weapons, but the player will be able to take their Guardian character with all his or her equipment, and carry it over to Destiny 2.
So, with "House of Wolves" still going strong and "The Taken King" arriving September 15th, and one can only hope that it will not have any bugs associated with it. As for Destiny 2, it will be coming...soon. Yes, it will probably be a while, but another expansion pack is sure to arrive in the fall. Considering that there is a plan to carry over Destiny characters into its sequel, I have to wonder if a sequel is really needed. Can't they just keep doing DLC? Perhaps Bungie is preparing for the next generation gaming systems in advance.
