Destiny 2: The Witch Queen finally fulfills the series’ dormant potential
Bungie’s sci-fi shooter series Destiny has always been good, but loving it hasn’t always been easy.
The games have seen a lot of turbulence, with a rocky launch in 2014, a rocky sequel in 2017, and design hiccups throughout. There have also been glowing periods, but they’ve all been in service of fixing past mistakes, rather than building something better down the line. So Destiny has always been a series about potential, and faithful players who continually hoped for something genuinely great around each corner.
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Nearly eight years, two full games, and six expansions later, Destiny 2is finally living up to that potential.
The Witch Queen starts with a new and intriguing mystery. A longtime villain — Savathun, sister of Oryx, the villain from the original Destiny’s beloved Taken King expansion — has somehow acquired the Light, the force that gives Guardians their power. The Hive, enemies I’ve been battling for nearly a decade, suddenly have the same magical space powers that I do, including the most video-gamey of all powers: the ability to respawn. The only way to keep them down is to rush their bodies on the battlefield, crushing their spiky Ghosts — the living machines that supply Guardians with the Light — in my hand.
Killing these evil Guardians and their Hive Ghosts is a foundational gameplay mechanic in The Witch Queen, but it comes with a moral quandary as
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