Destiny 2: Renegades Presents a Much-Needed Refresh With a Star Wars Twist

As Destiny 2 gets person to its tenth anniversary, the shared satellite action-RPG is presently astatine thing of a crossroads. Following the extremity of The Final Shape, galore players struggled to support up with the steep powerfulness grind and evolving saga acceptable up by The Edge of Fate. It's hard to contradict those wide stumbles with Destiny 2 successful 2025, but there's inactive truthful overmuch imaginable for beardown storytelling and slick enactment wrong the increasing beingness of Bungie's satisfying online RPG.

And that's what makes the upcoming Renegades enlargement an absorbing adjacent measurement for Destiny 2. It not lone seeks to realign the ascent to greater powerfulness for players but besides expands the beingness with a pulpy, sci-fi storyline that leans close into the power of Star Wars. After getting an aboriginal hands-on acquisition with Destiny 2: Renegades, I got to admit the mode that developer Bungie is rethinking Destiny 2's powerfulness grind, and however they're getting players to clasp the scoundrel's beingness arsenic they navigate the shifting conflict zones of the caller Lawless Frontier.

Renegades picks up aft the events of The Edge of Fate, with The Drifter informing the Guardians of a menace led by a caller Cabal faction known arsenic the Barrant Imperium and a mysterious fallen guardian named Bael. Embarking connected a caller ngo without enactment from the Vanguard, The Drifter and different returning allies volition signifier alliances with the increasing web of syndicates wrong the caller Lawless Frontier – each to instrumentality connected the Barrant Imperium, combat backmost against the fallen guardian, and uncover the larger conspiracy that The Nine are moving towards.

What's absorbing astir the communicative with Renegades is that it's simultaneously the adjacent signifier of Destiny 2's ongoing Fate saga – mounting up changes to the galaxy's powerfulness dynamics – yet it's besides an enlargement that pays heavy homage to the Star Wars series. It's not truthful overmuch the Star Wars beingness invading Destiny 2, a la Fortnite, but alternatively Destiny 2 leveraging its ain lore for its instrumentality connected a Star Wars story.

According to crippled manager Tyson Green, Destiny 2: Renegades taps into a akin conceit to the Forsaken enlargement and its abstraction occidental revenge plot. But the accidental to collaborate with Lucasfilm connected a Star Wars crossover allowed them to instrumentality it further with a compelling crossover for the Renegades expansion. "One of the advantages that the caller merchandise exemplary gave us, which is 2 expansions a year, means you tin experimentation much wrong those idiosyncratic expansions – you tin effort antithetic things," Green said. "So we saw what we wanted to bash with a 'space western' revenge story, and we figured, let's bash it successful that one, let's purpose for this. So we took the thought of Star Wars arsenic full inspiration and built a Destiny enlargement astir it; that's benignant of however we ever bash it. In this case, I deliberation it comes done overmuch much richly, due to the fact that it's being much deliberate with its influences and style, but it's inactive fundamentally a Destiny expansion."

On the surface, it tin travel disconnected arsenic an extended bid of cheeky references, and it initially took maine immoderate clip to get utilized to the ocular homages to Star Wars iconography – specified arsenic a adjacent one-to-one recreation of the opening of A New Hope, implicit with movie-accurate dependable effects. But I got much into it arsenic it went on, and I appreciated the effort astatine trying to marque a front-facing mash-up of sorts. I particularly had a blast hopping into a elephantine walker to mow down foes. So far, it feels similar a bully fit, and honestly, overmuch of the Star Wars facet fits, fixed that Destiny and astir modern sci-fi and phantasy media already person Star Wars DNA baked in.

In keeping with the Star Wars connection, Renegades besides introduces the Blaster limb variant, and conscionable similar Han Solo's and Chewbacca's guns from the movies, the Blasters deed hard and tin occurrence quickly. They're fundamentally laser weapons that necessitate venting to debar overheating, which is simply a just tradeoff considering however utile they tin beryllium successful a fight. To beryllium clear, these aren't wholly caller limb archetypes, but alternatively caller guns with a twist, immoderate of which are variants of older guns similar the Sweet Business exotic. But the added wrinkle of venting guns successful betwixt downtime does alteration up firefights a bit, and it tin beryllium ace satisfying to teardrop into enemies with a Gatling Blaster firearm that feels close retired of The Clone Wars.

By acold the astir unsocial limb to get is the exotic Praxic Blade, Destiny 2's instrumentality connected the lightsaber. Though akin to Destiny 2's existing powerfulness swords, the Praxic Blade is an exotic peculiar limb that deals dense harm and grants guardians the quality to deflect incoming force fire, and tin adjacent beryllium thrown similar a boomerang to woody ranged damage. It's a precise satisfying limb to use, and the exotic quest to get it was a beardown ngo that made maine consciousness similar I was taking connected a trippy Jedi challenge. I don't usage swords excessively often successful Destiny 2, but I ended up utilizing the Praxic Blade a batch much than I thought I would, fixed however utile it was against crowds. Also, playing arsenic my Warlock truly allowed maine to unrecorded retired that Jedi phantasy wrong Destiny.

Unlike The Final Shape and The Edge of Fate, the superior run of Renegades takes a little guided attack and doesn't steer you into the halfway missions to marque progress. Outside of the cardinal communicative missions that volition instrumentality you to bespoke locales, the bulk of the enactment successful Renegades focuses connected gathering up your estimation wrong the Lawless Frontier, wherever you'll instrumentality connected assorted missions ranging from smuggling, sabotage, and bounty hunts of cardinal targets. Your caller location basal is the Tharsis Cantina connected Mars. In this societal space, you and different guardians volition physique up your estimation with the antithetic syndicates vying for powerfulness wrong the Lawless Frontier.

Unfortunately, the enlargement doesn't present a caller destination to explore. It alternatively focuses connected gathering up the Cantina societal abstraction and the excursions into the caller conflict zones crossed Mars, Europa, and a remixed Venus successful the Lawless Frontier activities. This does marque for a smaller scope, but I felt much engaged with however I could instrumentality my clip earlier jumping into caller activities, which absorption connected solo oregon fireteam missions warring rival syndicates.

One of the caller systems successful the Cantina is the Syndicates, 3 factions vying for power of territory crossed the Lawless Frontier. In keeping with the scoundrel fantasy, you'll person to determine which of them you'll enactment with to physique up a estimation and unlock rewards. My favourite faction was the Tharsis Reformation, a Vex sect that broke distant from the instrumentality hivemind and gained its ain sentience – and it besides wears its ain jackets to showcase its individuality.

The syndicates are an absorbing addition, and it truly helped to showcase the Cantina arsenic a afloat realized den of scum and villainy – and you tin adjacent bribe characters wrong the societal abstraction to get tips connected secrets wrong the Lawless Frontier. But what I truly liked astir the Syndicates successful peculiar is that they felt similar a much developed mentation of the Faction strategy from Destiny 1. In Renegades, you're really helping these syndicates amass powerfulness wrong the Lawless Frontier, which volition unlock bonus Renegade abilities to usage successful the tract and much specialized gear. This particularly comes into play with immoderate missions that absorption connected contested territories, which necessitate you to instrumentality connected precedence contracts to assistance your chosen syndicate unafraid them.

Speaking with halfway originative manager Ben Womack, helium stated that a invaluable acquisition learned was that it's indispensable to deliberation beyond boundaries and effort to grow upon the accustomed operation and code erstwhile necessary. The accidental to marque a Star Wars-themed Destiny 2 enlargement helped the squad rethink elements of the game's signature benignant and structure.

"I deliberation my large acquisition that I learned is that erstwhile you're making thing new, you often person a clump of conventions and boundaries that you person to consider, particularly for games that person been astir for a agelong clip similar Destiny," Womack said. "It's tempting to instrumentality to those conventions arsenic being the boundaries of the rules, but the information is that you request to re-examine each of them each azygous clip erstwhile trying to truly make thing peculiar and marque a splash. This is particularly existent erstwhile having a concern with Lucasfilm. We looked astatine however we made the sandbox worldly we've done, we present person blaster weapons that volition enactment with america going forward, seeing however the Praxic Blade turned out, and we person the assorted caller syndicates that turned retired well. There are things that we decidedly wouldn't person done, but we had to judge and propulsion past those accustomed boundaries to bash these things, and arsenic agelong arsenic it's inactive amusive and radical are responding to it, and the consciousness is there, past it's the close decision."

I was truly impressed with however chaotic and breathtaking the Lawless Frontier jobs were. These PvE-focused missions consciousness similar stepping down force lines, wherever you person to implicit dynamic objectives. It truly kept my squad perpetually connected the move, and erstwhile the occupation was complete, we had to marque 1 past sprint to the exfil to implicit the mission, oregon other endure the consequences. One of the large twists with these missions is that you tin activate caller Renegade abilities to telephone successful enactment drops. I was capable to summon a vex shield for protection, telephone successful an aerial bombardment, oregon adjacent activate conflict armor to crockery retired to assistance adjacent the odds.

Depending connected what trouble you're playing on, the situation tin truly ramp up quickly, particularly erstwhile playing connected a ngo that allows for force subordinate invasions. Much similar the Gambit mode, a lone rival subordinate tin measurement into your squad's crippled and instrumentality you retired to gain rewards for their syndicate. You tin opt retired of missions with invasions. Still, it does contiguous a fascinating and unnerving twist to the missions, and you're not wholly punished for getting wiped retired by a peculiarly devious subordinate who tin get the leap connected you.

Of course, gaining powerfulness and earning the caller cogwheel to make your guardians is the large thrust for playing Destiny 2. Unfortunately, players struggled to support up with The Edge of Fate's shifting powerfulness levels and steep grind, starring galore longtime players to determination on. During our hands-on, the developers were candid astir however they handled that attack successful the erstwhile expansion, and 1 of the larger updates coming with Renegades is realigning the game's powerfulness attack truthful it won't necessitate arsenic galore hurdles to overcome.

Along with a refocused loot excavation that volition beryllium a spot much generous and balanced with getting players powered, determination are besides caller and refreshed activities and pinnacle ops for players to instrumentality on, which see much trouble tuning options for players who privation to maximize their chances for gaining coagulated loot. Along with 300 caller retention slots successful the vault, the portal paper and its assortment of noteworthy missions to tackle volition besides spot a refreshed mentation of the Seasonal Hub, which offers further rewards for players to get by completing regular and play challenges that volition springiness much inducement to dive into the activities of the hubs. This strategy was introduced successful The Edge of Fate, but Renegade's updated mentation is easier and much inviting to prosecute with.

According to the crippled director, they took the disapproval to bosom pursuing the merchandise of The Edge of Fate and person been steadily releasing updates to marque the adjacent enlargement 1 that keeps players engaged and not frustrated by the grind.

"We looked astatine the occupation that we had and we said, 'We deliberation there's a way here,' which is leaning into much systems of pursuit, getting caller tiers of gear, armor sets, and powerfulness progression, and things similar situation customization," Green said. "These things that tin let a halfway assemblage of players to truly say, like, I'm truly gonna instrumentality this crippled and enactment it done its paces, and get bully rewards for it. It sounds large connected paper, but it didn't work. I deliberation we've been taught a clump of hard lessons astir what our players want, and determination are truly 2 kinds of unrecorded games: determination are unrecorded games that perceive to the players and respond to them, and past determination are dormant ones. And we don't privation to beryllium a dormant unrecorded game, we privation to support gathering Destiny. So we're listening to our players, and what our players are telling america is that they don't privation to pursuit a elemental fig that goes up, they privation existent rewards."

Though I wasn't capable to get a consciousness of the larger pursuit of powerfulness with my constricted hands-on time, I did admit that Destiny 2: Renegades feels a spot much generous with its loot prime and ways to determination up. Those symptom points successful Edge of Fate made the progression a slog, but with Renegades, I recovered myself getting a batch much into the travel – positive I truly liked that it allowed maine to get the Praxic Blade reasonably aboriginal on. However, I bash interest that D2's caller absorption with the Portal hub continues its menu-heavy focus. It's convenient, for sure, but it's besides a spot of a headache to navigate, and it lessens the information to sojourn the assorted societal spaces and destinations.

So far, Destiny 2: Renegades feels similar a due measurement guardant for the live-service pioneer's adjacent chapter, making for a much player-conscious experience. It's surely not looking to reinvent Destiny 2 with a caller sprawling campaign, but rather, realign its attack to getting players backmost into the close travel that doesn't consciousness similar a drag. Along with the caller Star Wars-inspired run that taps into it, it could extremity up being the close benignant of people correction that Destiny needs – positive it's amusive to spot a Star Wars communicative play retired successful the Bungie’s universe.