Destiny 2, like most of its guardians, seemed to withstand almost any ordeal. Big blunders were followed by unexpected, nearly magical wins. Any longtime player can attest to its cycle of stalwart glory and inevitable decadence—or, as my clanmates call it, “it’s so over” and “we’re so back.”
Disaster truly struck with The Edge of Fate last year, marking a major departure from the game’s old vision. The expansion cranked the grind up to 11, watering it down to a few activities that mattered. The rest of the drops weren’t aligned to the tier system or didn’t raise your power—essentially, they became obsolete.
Devoid of most of its meaningful content after The Edge of Fate, Destiny 2 seemed to resign itself to mediocrity—a tragic fate for a game that excelled in a lot of what it tried. Instead of quickly backtracking on overwhelmingly negative feedback, a morose leadership let the community’s resentment fester, creating the image that it was either unwilling or unable to salvage the game. The end seemed like a matter of “when,” not “if.”
