Destiny

Platform(s): PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Genre: Action
Publisher: Activision
Developer: Bungie
Release Date: Sept. 9, 2014

Advertising

As an Amazon Associate, we earn commission from qualifying purchases.





PS4/XOne Preview - 'Destiny: The Taken King'

by Chris "Atom" DeAngelus on June 22, 2015 @ 1:15 a.m. PDT

Destiny offers unprecedented variety of FPS gameplay, including story, cooperative and competitive multiplayer modes combined with public and social activities.

Destiny is an ongoing game, as fans of the franchise are sure to know. While the initial story has probably been long since finished by dedicated players, new expansions have come out every few months or so to add to the content. Destiny: The Taken King represents the biggest expansion to date, with a full-fledged new campaign designed to test players who think they've already mastered the hardest the game has to offer. Of course, the expansion will have content for players of all levels, but it's clear that a good chunk of the new gear and challenges are geared toward high-level players.

The Taken King begins after the raid Crota's End. Crota, the final boss of that raid, is one of the Hive's strongest. Unfortunately, killing him only served to tick off his papa, the titular Taken King Oryx, who's a bit miffed and has decided the only solution is some good, old-fashioned vengeance. He storms into the solar system with his Taken army and prepares to unleash hell on the unfortunate Guardian who killed his son.


The Taken are the new enemy type in the Destiny universe. The Taken King's special ability is to take enemies who already exist and corrupt them to his power. For example, we encountered The Taken in the demo devastating a Cabal base. One of the things it did there was to take Cabal Phalanxes and convert them to Taken Phalanxes, which have an eerie, glowing white form. They are significantly more aggressive, and their shields can project a force-blast that knocks you down. Taken Psions can split and continue to do so unless you kill them all. Fail to focus on them, and they can quickly overwhelm you. The Taken have overtaken multiple factions, so Fallen Knights also show up with a new deadly AoE attack that can be a tremendous threat.

Fortunately, while the enemies have powered up, so have the Guardians. Each of the main three classes now has a new available subclass. Hunters have the Nightstalker class, which is described as a supportive class. Their smoke grenade stuns and disorients enemies, making it great for team play. They can evade damage more easily and create area-of-effect void attacks that make it hard for enemies to advance. They can create a bow and arrow of energy that fires a shot to stun all enemies in an area. In exchange, you gain the ability to lock down enemies so your allies can wreck them.

The Warlock gets the Stormcaller class, which is based on lightning elemental attacks. Both the melee attack and grenade attack are replaced by powerful lightning-charged versions. The grenade can call down a lightning storm. You can also recharge your abilities to chain attacks together. The super move lets them summon a lightning storm with their hands to devastate their enemies.


The last of the new subclasses is the Sunbreaker Titan, who just wants to deal massive damage and set enemies aflame. They can create powerful fire strikes with their melee attacks and make massive walls of flame with their grenades. The Hammer of Sol, their new super move, is almost delightful in its simplicity: gigantic flaming hammers that crush everything in their way.

The Taken King includes these new subclasses and a new campaign based on stopping the Taken King before he can kill everyone. This includes a fair bit of new side content, including strikes, bosses, a raid, and gear. If you've already maxed out your characters and are looking for new excitement and adventures, The Taken King is shaping up to be a hefty expansion pack. Destiny: The Taken King will be available for $39.99 on Sept. 15, 2015. At the same time, there will also be a Legendary edition of the game featuring every bit of Destiny content, including the main game and the first two expansions, for $59.99.



More articles about Destiny
blog comments powered by Disqus