Destiny 2’s Witch Queen Campaign is the Strongest Expansion Yet

With every new enlargement, Destiny 2 brings new weapons for participant Guardians to try in the direction of and adventures for them to go on. These expansions are usually fairly good, however typically, Bungie’s shared world shooter will put an even bigger emphasis on the previous, since that’s the primary draw of the sequence. There will nonetheless be a strong story informed with every enlargement, however it may well usually really feel like these tales take a again seat to concentrate on what you’ll use to conquer wave after wave of enemies. (See: a grenade launcher that shoots worms.) While the latest Witch Queen enlargement does supply loads of spectacular weapons and armor, it additionally spends an appropriate period of time on constructing a marketing campaign that truly feels well worth the value of admission.

Leading as much as Witch Queen’s launch, the largest promoting level of the entire enlargement (exterior that aforementioned worm launcher) was the Hive Guardians. They’re a blast to struggle, and the enlargement does a superb job of constructing them really feel like a well-known risk, however nonetheless lots alien. Their existence is central to the enlargement’s story, and the largest thriller surrounding every little thing happening with its chief villain, Savathun.

For a lot of the story, it seems like the reply of how she managed to present her folks the Light that grants Guardians their powers is one in every of two choices, neither of them nice: both the Hive Queen discovered from harvesting Guardians in a Strike early into Destiny 2’s lifespan, or got here concerning the info extra just lately whereas posing as Ikora’s mentor, Osiris. Because the previous Strike simply isn’t obtainable to be performed anymore, the latter is offered because the extra apparent of the 2. As such, it’s greater than a little bit satisfying to be on Savathun’s Throne World and defeat a Hive Guardian, significantly after they’ve popped their Super. It’s much more nice (however nonetheless deeply tousled) to safe your victory by crushing its Ghost within the palm of your hand.

Ghosts are central to the Guardians and the lore of Destiny, and Witch Queen spends a while digging into the Guardians’ little floating associates by introducing a pair of Hive Ghosts. Fynch is the one gamers will spend probably the most time with; because the central NPC on Savathun’s Throne World, he’s greater than keen to assist the Guardians convey an finish to the queen’s schemes. Fynch seems like a comforting presence on the unsettling Throne World, whereas additionally carrying a way of menace as he casually hovers over the stays of his Hive Guardian. Destiny doesn’t usually give a number of Ghosts the prospect to work together one-on-one, which is what makes it so attention-grabbing when your Ghost regularly probes and expresses skepticism at their new ally.

Typically, Nolan North’s given the Ghost a number of “kid brother” power, the sort that may be both really funny or typically at odds with how the participant feels within the second. But Witch Queen offers Ghost a number of materials to work with, and it’s actually one thing to listen to him turn out to be genuinely offended at seeing others of his sort struggle for the flawed facet, at the same time as they—like him—had been created for a similar goal to find folks worthy to wield the Traveler’s reward. While gamers have spent the previous 12 months turning foes into friends, just like the Guardian Crow (previously antagonist Uldren Sov, earlier than you possibly killed him), it’s a bit extra of a hurdle to just accept the Hive as Guardians, since that is the primary time we’re seeing non-humans with the Traveler’s energy. Because this enlargement started not lengthy after Savathun’s escape from her crystal jail in Season 15 (the place she regularly stored calling the Guardian her “friend” and sowed mistrust among the many heroes), it means one thing when Ghost and Ikora hold Fynch and his seemingly earnest makes an attempt to assist at arm’s size.

The second Ghost is Immaru, who belongs to Savathun herself. Through probing Savathun’s reminiscences in her Throne World, it seems that after being freed by the Awoken Queen Mara Sov on the finish of Season 15 (and now with out her worm acquainted), the Hive Queen was on demise’s door. With her final breath, she made her option to the Traveler to monologue at it earlier than dying peacefully…at which level, the Traveler created Immaru to convey her again as a Guardian, the identical manner Ghosts have resurrected numerous Guardians on Earth. Lore-heavy gamers have doubtless been conscious for a while that the Traveler doesn’t have the most effective relationship with no matter civilizations it chooses to grant its Light to, particularly because it has a nasty behavior of dipping out as soon as these Pyramid ships present up. (The earlier enlargement, Beyond Light, targeted on a Fallen who was devastated by the Traveler’s abandonment and was seduced by the Darkness.) The “why” of Savathun being changed into a Guardian doesn’t get a solution, however the revelation’s nonetheless a intestine punch to the sport’s heroic NPCs. Seeing Savathun’s reminiscences forces them to confront a fact about their god—and humanity’s perceived specialness when in comparison with different races within the galaxy—that they’ve been ignoring for a very long time, deliberately or in any other case.

“Truth” has been an enormous theme in Destiny 2 as of late, so it’s becoming that it serves to underpin the conclusion to this enlargement. Witch Queen’s ultimate stretch is a normal run at saving the Traveler from being yanked away from the Guardians, however its novelty comes from displaying Savathun her pre-Guardian reminiscences concerning the circumstances of the Hive’s beginning. Manipulated by the Darkness and previously generally known as Sathona, she and her sisters—Aurash, who would turn out to be the Taken King Oryx, and Xi Ro, the longer term Xivu Arath—had been granted familiars and pledged themselves to worm gods to overcome the celebs. The irony of the Queen of Lies being lied to doesn’t final lengthy throughout what’s a fairly epic boss battle the place Savathun places up her greatest struggle earlier than lastly being put down. But the specter of her remains to be very a lot in play, because the Traveler out of the blue beams Immaru away earlier than the Guardian can smash the Hive Ghost into items.

Narratively, Witch Queen is the most effective enlargement that Destiny 2 has had, and would be the strongest enlargement for the sequence general. (Emphasis on “maybe,” given how excessive followers regard Taken King and the now vaulted Forsaken.) After a lot desk setting, it’s good to lastly get solutions and play a marketing campaign that has an actual, full story to inform and never simply really feel prefer it’s establishing future gameplay mechanics. With our first take a look at the Witness, a member of the Darkness with a legion of Pyramid ships underneath their command, it feels just like the world of this science fantasy franchise is about to turn out to be alive in a model new manner. One that’ll hopefully make the eventual grind for brand new gear value doing for weeks on finish and inform tales that make Guardians really feel like a brand new type of legend.

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