Destiny 2: The Final Shape launches on June 4th for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS4, PS5 and PC, and it’s a make-or-break opportunity for Bungie. Between rumors of a Sony takeover and more layoffs, if it doesn’t hit financial targets, there’s a lot of pressure on the developer to make this expansion the best it can be.
Then again, as the conclusion to the Light and Darkness saga, which began in September 2014, players probably expect nothing less. The good news is that The Final Shape seems like it could meet the lofty expectations of die-hard fans and then some. Here’s everything you need to know before diving in.
Story
Much of the story won’t make sense if you’re out of the loop on Destiny 2 since The Red War (the game’s first campaign) or Forsaken. To cut to the chase, the Traveller’s enemy has finally been revealed – a being called The Witness, who harnesses the Darkness – and by the end of Lightfall, it found a way to enter the former.
The seasonal story for the past year or so has been the Vanguard figuring out a way to give chase. After an encounter with the Leviathan (the other one), resurrecting Savathun (Oryx’s sister, “killed” during The Witch Queen) and invoking the long-rumored 13th wish with Riven, the Ahamkara, players finally get to venture inside the Pale Heart of the Traveler and stop The Witness once and for all. Of course, they’re not alone, as the Ikora, Zavala and a returning Cayde-6 help out, alongside allies like Mithrax, Caiatl and even Savathun.
Pale Heart of the Traveler
The Pale Heart of the Traveler is an amalgam of multiple environments and aesthetics, including the classic Tower from Destiny 1. As players traverse the landscape, they’ll see areas twisted by The Witness and corruption spreading throughout, resulting in surreal perspectives and wonders. You may spot levels based on The Relic in The Enclave from The Witch Queen, the interiors of Pyramid Ships and even the Old Cosmodrome where the player first awakened. It’s all leading up to The Monolith of The Witness, where the landscape is twisted, and probably where the next raid occurs.
Campaign
The other notable thing about the Pale Heart – and The Final Shape’s campaign – is that it’s the developer’s first linear destination for Destiny 2. You’ll see the world around you slowly warp, with statues deconstructed and massive hands poking out of gateways. However, after you finish the campaign, with soon-to-be-former game director Joe Blackburn confirming seven missions on day one to PC Gamer, the rest of the Pale Heart will open up and allow for full exploration.
Presumably, there will be new quests, Exotic missions, Public Events, a new activity and much more for players to sink their teeth into. It’s also confirmed that Episode: Echoes, part of Bungie’s new post-launch episodic content, will begin in the second week of the expansion.
New Raid
Here’s the kicker – the expansion’s story doesn’t conclude with the campaign. You must face The Witness in the new raid, which goes live on June 7th, though Bungie indicates that non-raiders can “experience the conclusion” sometime after its launch. Those looking to compete in the World First raid race, with Contest Mode (at 1965 Power) enabled for 48 hours, will only have a few days to prep and get their Power level and loadouts on lock. On the bright side, at least there’s an in-game Fireteam Finder tool to quickly group up with other players, even if they refuse to carry me through Legendary Onslaught (I’m not salty at all).
Legendary Mode
Legendary Mode returns for the campaign, which should, like previous expansions, offer more challenging encounters and modifiers. Upon completing the Legendary campaign, you’ll receive an entire gear set at 1960 Power, 20 Power higher than the new soft cap. The raid will likely only start at 1965 Power and steadily increase throughout, but this is still the quickest way to prepare and a great way to high Power armor and weapons.
The Dread
We’ve seen various threats from The Witness, whether it’s Disciples like Rhulk or unorthodox enemies like Tormentors. As it turns out, the latter are part of a new faction – the Dread. It includes the Harbinger and Weaver, Strand wielders who can Suspend and pull players, respectively. The Omen and Attendant are Stasis users unleashing shards and waves that can freeze and shatter.
The Grim are new gun-touting flying enemies that can daze players with their shouts, while the Husk are melee combatants who unleash seeking Geists upon defeat. Various Subjugators have also been spotted, including one in a new Strike – Mhakt, Subjugator of the Forgotten, who seemingly has a collection of Ahamkara skulls you can use against them.
Prismatic Subclasses
One of the biggest surprises in The Final Shape is Prismatic, a new-ish subclass of sorts. The principle behind it is simple – you can finally wield Light and Darkness simultaneously while mixing and matching abilities from different subclasses. However, it’s a complete game-changer for the Destiny franchise, which has traditionally walled off different elemental subclasses from each other.
You can individually select a Super, melee, grenade and Aspects from the current five elements and access all movement options and class abilities. There are some limits, especially at the start – Prismatic is unlocked upon finishing the first campaign mission. However, you don’t have to earn a currency like Stasis or Strand to unlock the abilities – they become available from Prismatic Chests or after “particularly tough” battles.
There are also new Prismatic Fragments that further enhance build-crafting, like Facet of Protection, which provides more damage reduction when surrounded by enemies; Facet of Justice, causing ability final blows to explode when Transcendent; and Facet of Defiance, which causes finishers to Jolt, Sever, Scorch, etc. depending on the damage type of your Super.
Transcendence
Transcendence can be considered the Prismatic “Super” of sorts, governed by two bars – representing Light and Darkness – beneath your existing Super gauge. Dealing Arc, Void and Solar damage or applying related buffs fills the one on the left; inflicting Stasis or Strand damage and conditions fills the one on the right. If you’re using a Kinetic weapon, don’t worry – it fills both gauges, though slightly slower (unleash one is already filled, at which point the other gets a bit of a boost).
Activating Transcendence grants access to a new grenade type for each class. Each combines elemental damage types in new ways – the Hunter’s Hailfire Spike deals Solar and Stasis damage, first slowing and then igniting enemies with a powerful cyclone. The Titan’s Electrified Snare will Suspend enemies with Strand and then chain Arc damage to Jolt them; the Warlock’s Freezing Singularity packs Vortex and Duskfield grenades before exploding, suppressing and damaging enemies.
Transcendence also instantly refills melee and grenade energy (alternating between while it is active will also increase regeneration for the other) while increasing weapon damage and damage resistance.
Exotic Class items
But that’s not all – further feeding into the power fantasy are the new Exotic class items, which contain two perks from existing Exotic armor. These are only usable with Prismatic subclasses and provide some pretty busted combinations, though they’re randomly rolled.
The Warlock’s Solipsis class item can have Spirit of the Assassin, which grants invisibility on finishers and powered melee final blows or Spirit of the Star-Eater, where picking up an Orc of Power when your Super bar is full will overcharge it and add bonus damage.
The Titan’s Stoicism mark can get Spirit of the Armamentarium for an additional grenade charge or Spirit of the Abeyant to improve the Strand ability, Drengr’s Lash. Exotic class items will drop from a new activity going live after the raid in the expansion’s second week, and players can farm it continuously for all kinds of random rolls and combinations depending on their Prismatic set-up.
New Light-Based Subclasses
No doubt forgotten throughout all this is the new Light-based subclasses incoming. These are Song of Flame for Warlocks, Twilight Arsenal for Titans and Storm’s Edge for Hunters, each with new Aspects.
Song of Flame is an ode to Radiance from Destiny 1 and will overcharge a Warlock’s melee and convert grenades into Spirits of Flame to hunt down enemies. Nearby enemies gain the Scorch effect for Solar and Kinetic weapons while gaining damage resistance and increased ability regen. Their Aspect, Hellion, allows for deploying a Solar Soul, which launches mortars at enemies from long range.
Twilight Arsenal is unique in that it throws three Void axes at enemies, which then explode and weaken them. Players can then pick these up to use as weapons, though early damage numbers did leave a bit to be desired. With the Unbreakable Aspect, Titans can consume their grenade for a shield that blocks incoming fire before being released to assail enemies (with the blast scaling with the amount of damage absorbed).
Finally, Storm’s Edge allows Hunters to throw an Arc dagger and blink to it three times during the Super’s duration. You can execute a whirlwind strike each time, which has some pretty decent range (and definitely does not raise balance concerns in PvP). With the Ascension Aspect, you can use your Class ability to launch upwards, Jolting enemies and Amplifying teammates. Prismatic may be your go-to subclass for massive bursts of power, but the new Light-based subclasses should provide other fun options.
New Weapon Types
It’s already a given that a new expansion will feature new weapons, and The Final Shape is no different. We’ve seen a new Strand energy sidearm, a revamped version of the Secret Handshake from Destiny 1 (now a primary shotgun) and other weapons. However, in its Destiny 2 Showcase last year, Bungie announced it would add a new rocket sidearm family. Sound familiar? That’s because the weapon type already launched with Indebted Kindness, available in the Warlord’s Ruin dungeon.
Perhaps this means more options will be available in The Final Shape, so you can finally get out of farming the perfect Indebted Kindness roll. Another new weapon type involves a Support auto rifle, which can switch between damaging enemies and healing allies. There are doubtless other weapons that we’ve yet to see, so expect many more options when the expansion drops.
New Exotics
There are also new Exotics, and while Bungie remains tight-lipped on some of the gear (expect that to change in the coming weeks), it did reveal some of the weapons. Tessellation is an Exotic energy fusion rifle from pre-ordering The Final Shape + Annual Pass, which adapts to your damage type to become either entirely Strand or Stasis. However, it also has a special reload that will absorb your grenade to unleash a powerful single projectile.
During the Destiny 2 Showcase in August 2023, the development team teased an Exotic sniper rifle that acted like the Hunter’s Golden Gun Super and another that could fire a powerful beam like the Traveler in Lightfall. They haven’t been officially detailed, though, and given how classic Exotics like Dragon’s Breath arrived before The Final Shape, they may launch at some other point. On the bright side, Red Death and the Khvostov 7G-02 are returning, so that’s neat.
Fireteam Power
Between vaulting content and campaigns and time-limited seasonal content with story beats, Destiny 2 hasn’t made it easy for new players to jump in and play with their friends. Fortunately, if you have a higher-level player, the new Fireteam Power will ensure you can play together, regardless of your Power level.
It essentially makes the highest Power player into the Power Leader – everyone else will then have their Power raised to within five levels of them. So if your friend is at 1820 Power, you’re boosted (figuratively) to 1815. Power Leaders gain a boost to Commendations, providing some incentive. However, while lower Power players can partake in the activity, their rewards will scale to their actual Power, not the boosted amount.
Account Power and Reward Power
How annoying is it to try and level up multiple alternate characters in Destiny 2? Well, not much nowadays since Into the Light gives you an 1810 armor set and weapons, but what about in The Final Shape, with its Power cap increase? This is where Account-Wide Power comes into play, dropping rewards based on your highest Power character. While you still need to consider the reward source, it at least means you won’t waste as much time fully gearing out another character for, say, the upcoming raid. Furthermore, Bungie will no longer sell Power Boosts – a positive step for everyone.
Speaking of rewards, all activities will now have a chance of dropping Powerful rewards that provide +1 Power when going from the Soft Cap to the Powerful Cap. Vendor rewards will always drop at three Power below your current level, while Collections items will always be five below. While not massively sweeping changes, they remove much of the tedium of farming certain activities for rewards or infusing weapons and armor from vendors and Collections to bring them to your current Power level.
No Power Limits on Legacy Gear
With all of these benefits that Bungie is throwing at players, another big surprise is the removal of Power caps on old Legendary gear. So if you want to break out the Year 1 Midnight Coup or Year 2 Nation of Beasts that are still sitting in your Vault for some reason, now’s your chance, though they may not necessarily be the best in class considering the sheer power creep over the years. If you already deleted them, then tough luck since there’s no way for Bungie to recover them (though it is looking into updating them and reintroducing ways to earn “most or all of these).
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