This Week at Bungie: Predictions for Jan 19

Hello Stranger, 

I know we are all eager to get some news from bungie about pretty much anything. And a lot of us were hoping that the last TWAB would give us a few details about new content or balance patches. Well, I made a few predictions for the last weekly update and I was pretty close to getting all of it right. The only thing I got wrong was the hint at a balance update. Nothing explicit, but something. Unfortunately we didn't get ANY hint at a balance patch.

So for this weeks "this week at bungie" I don't imagine they are actually going to tell us much. There will probably be something about the bungie bounties and Iron banner, and how we need to go get that sick booty. But a part from that I really only see us getting subtle hints with no fixed dates. I would imagine that they will (hopefully) hint at a balance patch which will be deployed in February. They have honestly been testing the community by with holding it from us this long.

I honestly would be surprised if they announced the next live team event as they probably want to stretch out the bungie bounties as much as possible before giving us anything new. Its always one thing at a time with Bungie. They may announce a ride along as well, but I kinda consider that to be less important. I'm sure it would be interesting to hear about how they made this or that. But for me, its not top priority. Welcome, but not essential. 

In summary, I think they will tell us stuff we already know! How very typical, I know. And hint at a balance patch/new content/adventures. They aren't going to give us any details yet. So be patient Guardian.

~Ducky

Destiny: Pulse/Shotgun Meta

So currently in Destiny you need a HRF pulse and a shotgun, or an Eyasluna type handcannon to have the best advantage that you can. Of course you can succeed with other weapons, but these give you the best advantage. But before we go into depth lets talk about how the heck we got to this type of meta.

At the transfer of year 1 to year 2 we saw handcannons get nerfed, and pulse rifles got buffed (essentially). This was the time of Red Death, Hawksaw, and Nirwen's Mercy. After this, Pulse rifles got a nerf and Doctrine of Passing (and similar archetypes) took their place (I believe this was around Christmas last year). This was about the time where legendary handcannons became popular as well. After Doctrine had been nerfed multiple times we saw the resurgence of Hawksaw and Grasp of Malok (again), sometime around the April update. Since then Rise of Iron has introduced guns like Clever Dragon, and Blind Perdition which are pretty much Hawksaw and GoM, just better.

So, in this brief history all we see are nerfs. Obviously this is a little problematic since it just slows the game down with every nerf. Back in year 1 Pulse Rifles were a little better than they are now, and they were by far the worst class of guns out there. They were complete garbage. So I guess you can judge by that how far we have fallen. 

Since the game has become so painfully slow we move to special weapons. Snipers had their hay-day for a while before they were nerfed into the ground (zoom nerfs, equip nerfs, flinch nerfs). For the record, I think the flinch is now in a good spot but I'm not a fan of the other two nerfs. The major problem with snipers in Destiny is that its far easier to rush a sniper with a shotgun because of movement abilities and small maps then to quick scope a rushing shotgunner. I'm not saying snipers are bad, they still 1-shot, they are just outclassed by shotguns and Pulse/Scout rifles (especially if they have HCR). 

Shotguns are in a great place right now, I think. The reason there are few ways to combat shotguns is because jump is really powerful in Destiny, and the maps are quite small. I have found that even blink, though it was nerfed a bunch, it is still viable with a shotgun because you can blink right overtop of someone. It takes more time to have to look up then to look down. Now, of course a player should be punished for running straight at another player who is shooting him. Shotgun warriors should not be able to do what they do. Players should have to be smart about their engagements with a shotgun. This is where primaries need some love. I would love to see a buff to primaries where they slow down a target if they land multiple shots on said target. That would be super dope. 

Fusions are fine, I don't really use fusions, some people do, some people are really good with them. They take some practice. Plan C is pretty good against shotguns. That's all I have with fusions.

I'm confident that shotguns will NOT be nerfed. Bungie knows that the game is already slow as it is, and if they nerf shotguns into the ground Fusions will probably take their place as the best close range OHK weapon. And no one wants to see the day where fusions are literally the best option. I kid. I think Bungie will give us more ways to combat shotguns, and perhaps punish players who main a shotgun. I'm looking at you juggertitan. 

~Ducky

Merry Christmas, Guardian

Destiny 2: Transferable Characters?

So I wanted to tackle a rather large issue, the transfer from Destiny as we know it to Destiny 2 sometime in 2017. Now I have been around since day 1 and I'm currently the only one of my friends left still grinding, that's alright. But what I've come to realize is that a lot of my friends don't see any reason to grind simply because everyone thinks Destiny 2 is a blank slate. And it very well could be, but here is why it isn't.

My Hunter, Beginning of Taken King

First of all, new characters, sure, why not? New classes? Probably not. New subclasses, maybe. I have a hard time believing there will be entirely new classes, because there isn't really anything in the lore about there being a, I don't know, Ranger, or a Commander or whatever. Destiny 2, is still within the same universe as Destiny 1, so it has to conform to what has already come. Otherwise it wouldn't be Destiny.

So in order for it to still be Destiny it needs to have the same classes, I know some of you are like, "hey, I want new classes and a fresh start." Well yeah, sure, which is why I think that new subclasses are a definite maybe. The kicker to all this is that Bungie has to make some radical changes in order to explain why there are different subclasses or (less likely) new classes completely. This is a sequel, not an entirely different game. We need to remember that.

Now I am not saying that Bungie couldn't pull off some spectacular storytelling, add different weapons/weapon systems, classes, subclasses etc. They have done it before. But I think with the limited time frame this team has had (remember Destiny 1 took ages), there will be a fair amount of familiar territory. 

Finally I want to mention the transfer of your character from Destiny 1 to Destiny 2. I have always wanted this (not my gear or weapons), but my character, my Female Awokan Hunter with all of the aesthetic stuff that I have gained throughout the last 3 years. I think we will be given the OPTION to carry on with our character if A, they keep the classes the same (i.e Hunter, Titan Warlock), and Destiny 2's story happens shortly after Destiny 1 chronologically speaking. If its far in the future or in the past on Saturn, it might not make sense to have the same character.

HOWEVER, I have a hard time believing that Bungie will introduce new classes, or that they will somehow make our character irrelevant through the story.

~Ducky