Destiny 2 Forsaken DLC: 5 Biggest Changes

Just a week before E3 2018, Bungie revealed new information about the upcoming expansion Forsaken for Destiny 2. Set for release on September 4, and available for pre-order now, it looks to channel the same rejuvenative energy that the original Destiny's The Taken King DLC offered--which overhauled leveling and loot mechanics. During their livestream, the developers stated that it's the largest Destiny expansion to date, there was certainly a lot of important details to parse through.


Along with a number of major quality-of-life updates, such as improvements to the user-interface, bulk shader deletion, collection menus to keep track of all gear items in-game, and increased vault space--there's now a greater focus on making sure all the upgrades to your guardians matter in the long-run. We singled out the five biggest changes coming to Destiny 2 this year, and what it means for returning players.

New Story And Our Return To The Reef

Described as a Western-revenge storyline, the main story of the Forsaken expansion brings players back to The Reef to fight against a new threat. After a mass prison-break, the Guardians will team up with Cayde-6 as he hunts down the rogue Fallen faction known as the Skorn--who look to be using a number of makeshift weapons and items, which they scavenged overtime. The Skorn are also led by a Baron who evidently led the breakout.


During the expansion, Guardians will explore the new Reef location known as the The Tangled Shore. The Reef was a location from the original game which, aside from some story missions and a home space, was underutilized. In Destiny 2, the returning location is much more fleshed out, taking place across a cluster of asteroid and debris floating in space, where you can take on a number of story missions and side-events. Eventually, you'll venture off to other planets and locations as you push back the Skorn, and take out their leader.

Rebalanced Weapons And Gear

Over the last year, Bungie stated that they've received feedback from fans regarding the current kinetic, energy, and power weapon system--which many felt somewhat limited players options. In the upcoming expansion, players will no longer be limited to three distinct weapon-classes, and you'll now be able to equip any weapon in any slot you wish (regardless of their type or makeup). In addition to this, the current masterwork system, where players can upgrade and essentially prestige specific weapons, will also see an upgrade. In Forsaken, players will be able to strengthen masterwork weapons, and even add in new mods for their favorite gear--placing in new perks and special buffs.

Gambit: The New Competitive Mode

Teased for the last few weeks, Bungie stated that Forsaken would have an all-new gametype not seen an online shooter before. During the livestream they revealed the Gambit mode, which blends together standard PvE and competitive mulitplayer gameplay. Pitting two teams of four against one another in horde-style scenarios, they'll have to fight off waves of enemies and monsters as they acquire more resources for their team. Eventually, they'll be able to place their acquired resources into a designated bank. While this will score the team some points, it will also send special enemies towards the other side, increasing the challenge on the opposing team's side.


As the game because more hectic over the course of the match, the team with the most resources can choose to send one member of their team to the enemy team's area, where they can go on the offensive for a limited time. While this incorporates many concepts and features that are commonplace in Destiny 2, the Gambit mode looks like one of the more interesting takes on multiplayer gameplay, which can offer a nice change of pace from the standard Crucible and Iron Banner game-modes.

New Weapon Type And Super Moves


Much like The Taken King expansion from Destiny 1, the Forsaken expansion will also add in new super moves for Guardians, along with a brand new weapon type not seen in the game before. During the livestream, we got a first look at the new bow weapon, which aims to offer a far more precise and tactical approach to gameplay. While they're slower and less reliable in close-quarters engagements, they make up for that by allowing for quick and quiet kills at a distance, while also offering some unusual buffs--such as electrifying nearby surfaces that shock enemies.


The three Guardian classes will also see a set of new skills and powers for their unique sub-classes. For instance, the Titan will be able to summon a large hammer made of solar energy to use as a melee weapon, while the Warlock's voidwalker class can use new teleporting moves to dash across the battle and field and unleash a large blast of void energy. While it's unclear how these new skills will work or how they can be acquired, it does look to offer some exciting new ways to play the familiar classes.


Dreaming City: The New Raid

It's finally happening. After the previous two expansions, players will finally be able to move on from the Leviathan Dreadnought raid and take on an entirely new raid. Taking place in the Dreaming City--the homeland of the Awoken race--Guardians will be able to explore a new free-roam area where they can take on the Raid mission, along with some other side-activities. Described as a mix between the Vault of Glass and the Leviathan raid, the makeup of the Dreaming City raid will change over time with new updates and weekly events. Many of the challenges of the raid follow a similar set-up to previous missions, such as puzzle solving, platforming challenges, and other combat encounters--but the developers stated that there will be more boss encounters and variety to be had in this Raid compared to the previous ones.