Destiny Review

It will soon be a whole year since Playstation 4 moved into my apartment, and since then I still haven’t managed to snatch a single game that would be worth buying this console for. Killzone: Shadow Fall It can be replaced quite well… with any good shooter from any platform. Infamous: Second Son, in general, is not a very unique sandbox game either. Or, for example, I wanted some kind of jprg – but there are none available now! On the horizon, a new part of Persona finally appeared, but it is still far away.

What did they suggest I try? A remake of The Last of Us, a remake of a remake of Tomb Raider, an update of FIFA with another number…

The only joy from the hasty purchase of a PS4 is that the console now costs even more. And the new controller connects to a PC without any problems. You can/should buy them separately from the console and play indie platformers from the Steam library.

Well, at least an attractive and purely console Destiny was released, even though it’s not an exclusive.

Destiny, if you’re not aware, is a first-person shooter that is also a cross-console MMO. It is of AAA caliber, with an epic PR campaign, graphics, upcoming additional content, and cosmic grandeur. If you have an Xbox 360 or PS3, you should buy the game because it is one of the last big projects coming out on these platforms. And if you have an Xbox One or PS4, you should buy the game because there is nothing else to play on these consoles.

This review could have ended well if the Destiny disc didn’t cost between $74 and $170 each. A ticket to see the third “Matrix” (which you had to watch in any case) cost much less at the time. Plus, a multiplayer project requires not only buying the box, but also maintaining a premium subscription. Therefore, it is still worth taking a closer look at the game.

The process is as follows: we have a peaceful city for shopping and receiving quests, and there is a map of locations filled with enemies of different difficulty levels. Missions are divided into story, side, and grind. If anything, the only difference between the first and second is the length of uninteresting briefings. We will talk separately about the grind below.

Surprisingly, Destiny turned out to be not only a genre MMO but also a decent shooter, which, I must admit, I personally didn’t expect much. Shooting enemies turned out to be an enjoyable pastime even without leveling, story, and gear. Perhaps it is the uncultured keyboard warrior in me speaking now, not accustomed to the harsh challenges of a gamepad, but I have already received much more pleasure from shooting enemies in our MMOFPSRPG than in the same Killzone: Shadow Fall.

But the role-playing elements, of course, also make themselves known. And, strangely enough, there is nothing particularly good to say about the local RPG elements. With one exception.

What do we love about role-playing games? Firstly, a strong, preferably non-linear storyline. Believe it or not, there is none here.

We also love RPGs for the long-term progression and perks. In Destiny, if desired, you can reach the maximum level in about a week, as the character’s maximum level is twenty. However, it is worth noting that the developers have been quite clever. In reality, level twenty is not the character’s limit, but rather the limit of their personal experience. It is possible to rank up further, but only through obtaining cool legendary blasters and space helmets, packed with various enhancements. Admit it, acquiring and selecting the right equipment is a task that is less trivial than simply dismantling combat locations. Local agents report that some individuals have reached level thirty thanks to a stylish wardrobe, and who knows, maybe this is not the limit, especially considering the upcoming inevitable DLC.

What else do we love about role-playing projects? Cooperative play, of course. And Destiny is not behind the trend, allowing players to form a team of up to three people. For cooperative trios, there are even special instance locations where no other player will interfere with the grouped adventurers. And this would all be great if gamers wandering through Destiny alone didn’t have to pay for the holiday of cooperative life. The catch is that these instances are mandatory for everyone, including gamers wandering through Destiny alone. And, as usual, special monsters dig in special locations. In our case, they are very tough monsters. Killing them is possible even for a solo player, and it’s not even that difficult, just very tedious and therefore not fun at all.

Sometimes, things happen right on the “public” parts of the map. For example, a large mechanical artillery scorpion may land on a location, and everyone present in the area will have to calm it down with all their gamer might. The good thing is that you can rush into these guys as a galactic berserker from the very first level, as the penalties for death in Destiny are negligible.

Why don’t we like role-playing crafts? Because of the grind. Especially the grind of crafting ingredients and unusual “elite” currency, without which you can’t shop in good stores. Both of these are in abundance in Destiny. The story is standard – first, you constantly have to grind, pick up, and store poorly lying garbage, then you have to complete batches of quests like “kill ten aliens and collect 50 of their scalps.” This gets very boring very quickly.

It’s hard to find fault with the technical side of Destiny, but there are still some annoyances. These annoyances are the constant loading screens after every half-mission and one and a half screens of menus. Well, this inconvenience is part of the story, which likes to repeat itself. Games of the previous generation had their own loading process, the audience got used to it, new consoles come out, and gamers accustomed to good things start complaining. It’s not fatal.

But in return, there is promised graphics, as well as, as a pleasant surprise, an excellent interface for various menus. The usual console mess is canceled this time – sorting through equipment and selecting missions is now simple and convenient.

As for the infamous cross-platform play. In the grand scheme of things, the only task of Destiny’s cross-console servers is to ensure that MMO landscapes don’t turn into deserted wastelands in two months (as happened, for example, with the similarly highly advertised project Titanfall). A certain benefit should come from this endeavor, the question is only how many hardcore fans the game will be able to attract. Otherwise, cross-platform play doesn’t play any role at all.

It seems that in Destiny, you can have a good time even without considering the MMO prospects of the project. The advertising lied to us again, and the action won’t be as cool as promised, but it will still be at a decent level. The game box comes with a one-month subscription to Playstation+, during which time you can enjoy most of the project’s delights if not all of them. Money will probably not be wasted. And then it’s up to you. If you like the local events and additional content, renew the subscription, and if not, then don’t.