On September 9th, Bungie and Activision will be teaming up to release arguably one of the most anticipated titles of the year. Destiny is not only poised to break sales figures, but it is also expected to set a standard for new IPs on both the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
As the release clock slowly winds down, we decided to express our personal thoughts on why Destiny is the biggest game of the year. Please feel free to read over our opinions and let us know what you all think of Destiny below:
Gary Swaby:
Ever since we heard Bungie had joined forces with Activision to create a brand new title, I was intrigued. As the studio responsible for Halo, it was inevitable that Bungie would create something special, and with Activision as the publisher, it was insurance that they’d have the budget to reach their full potential.
Eventually, Destiny was revealed, and though I’m rarely impressed when seeing a game for the first time, I knew instantly that it would be something I’d play. Then there came a time where anything considered “next-gen” was being hyped. There were two particular next-gen fps releases for 2014 that were being over-hyped, Titanfall and Destiny. Both of these games were online only games, but after reading up on both of them, it was apparent to me that Destiny would have the most depth of the two. TitanFall was geared more towards the deathmatch, twitch shooter crowd, whereas Bungie were clearly trying to do something much more ambitious. TitanFall released and while it was fun, it clearly didn’t have enough content to hold my interest, and many felt the same.
E3 came along and I got to play Destiny with colleague Edward Velazquez. I was impressed with what I played, but not as much as long time Halo fanatic Edward. When I saw how excited he was about Destiny after playing it, I knew it had a level of magic that I’d clearly missed. I’ve played a few Halo games in my day, but to hear someone who praises Halo above many other games hold Destiny in a high regard, I knew there was something there that I hadn’t yet discovered.
The open beta released in July and I got to spend some more time with it in my own personal space. This was the moment where I fell for Destiny. As someone who enjoys both competitive fps, and expansive MMO gameplay, I was delighted to play a game that brought the two elements together so effectively. We’ve seen MMO’s on consoles, but I still feel like there hasn’t been a MMO-esque experience that would fully cross over to the mainstream audience.
Destiny is an important game because, should it succeed as predicted, it will have the influence to change the industry for the better. Not only that, but in a year where we’ve suffered so many delays and disappointments, we need that one hyped game that connects and thus validates our purchase of new systems. Yes, it’s a multi-generation title, but let’s be real, next-gen is the way to truly enjoy Destiny. So in my eyes if you own an Xbox One or a PS4, you owe it to yourself to buy this game.
Tony Polanco:
I don’t see how anyone can think that this game WON’T be the biggest title of the year. Let’s forget about the obvious fact that the game has no real competition outside of Assassin’s Creed: Unity this year (sorry Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare). There are several reasons why Destiny will be the one game to rule them all this year.
The first and most obvious reason is the money behind it. Its massive marketing budget will no doubt play a significant role in the game’s success. With $250 million dollars behind it, Destiny is a game that everyone and their grandma will know about. When I was in Times Square the other day, I saw a huge poster for Destiny plastered on the side of a building. That kind of ad space doesn’t come cheap but it will help get the game into the public’s consciousness. You’ll need to be living under a rock in order to not know what Destiny is.
I’ll admit that I’m not that proficient with FPS games but I had no real problems playing this game. The controls were intuitive and smooth. This is key to its reach because if a guy like me who isn’t very familiar with FPS games can easily master the controls, then anyone can. If the game is to be massively popular it has to be accessible to most gamers and Destiny definitely succeeds on that front.
It’s “crack” factor is another thing that will keep people coming back for more. When I played the beta, the prospect of playing to earn more rewards from random loot drops and leveling up so that I could use the high level gear and weapons was extremely addictive. You know a game has you by the short hairs when you can’t stop thinking about playing it; when all you want is to play it as soon as possible. After the beta was over I went through heavy withdrawal. I won’t have to suffer that when I get the game in my PS4 and can satiate my desire to get another fix whenever I want.
Another reason that it will be hugely successful is because it will be on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. The social aspect, a key component of games nowadays, is increased significantly thanks to the ability of both consoles to allow users to share their experiences with the world. This will let people who aren’t playing Destiny see how much fun its players are having and entice them into picking up the game themselves.
Forgive me for using a double negative but Destiny can’t NOT be a massive success. It has a gargantuan budget behind it, a developer who made FPS games on consoles viable and a publisher who took FPS games and made them mainstream. Destiny also has the social component that is essential for all big AAA games to have. This game may fail in an alternate reality but I don’t see that happening in this one. This will be THE biggest game of the year by far.
Charles Singletary:
Though not truly an MMO title, the “Connected Shooter” that is Destiny certainly appeals to me as a frequent MMO player. Value is incredibly important to me as a gamer, with my time to play being extremely limited. I’ve grown more attracted to immersive, single player experiences but have been waiting for an intriguing multiplayer title to draw me back in the fray. My last true investments into online play were The Last of Us with its highly underrated competitive mode and Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. FFXIV was my first time grinding all the way into the endgame and experiencing an MMO for what it truly was, so I definitely see the influences in Destiny’s framework.
Destiny has come along and reinvigorated my desire to team up with other players and quite possibly threaten my productivity altogether. The game is a very ambitious undertaking that seeks to find a balance for casual players and those more interested in a grind heavy title. Value such as this will give the game very long legs going forward which is certainly a triumph in today’s gaming culture. Most titles all but lose support months after release with only the hardcore warranting the price of servers, but Bungie wants to deliver an ever expanding game that evolves over 10 years. For example, Bungie has a team that rotates in and out 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and they’re supposed to be employed for the entirety of that ten years in an effort to bring entirely new events to Destiny every single day.
Uh….yea, sign me up please.
With continued support like that with balance corrections, packs of new gear (which we’re already getting with two upcoming expansions), and an evolving story, Destiny could get the Game of the Year nod simply for being more “game” than anyone else is offering. It also helps that the beta was incredibly smooth and engaging, showing the amount of polish Bungie has committed to. When it comes down to it, Destiny is fun and it looks like it’ll only get more and more fun as the days go by.
Destiny is out tomorrow for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One.
