Destiny April Update Impressions – Hello Darkness, My Old Friend

Bad: No Story Progression

What’s going on with the Traveler? Is the Speaker still a thing? How is the Reef recovering since a whole boat-load of them were murdered by Oryx? Why are the Taken still running around? Why in the world are they in the Prison of Elders? Those last two questions are at least partially – like 5 percent or so – explained in the story. That doesn’t change the fact there’s no actual story progression in this update at all. So if you have any questions about the Exo Stranger or Osiris or even Eris Morn’s motives, then keep asking them. It’s going to be a while.

Bad: Quest Steps Simply Phone It In

I’m tired of going out into the world and just collecting some “Echo of Malok” or some nonsense. I’m tired of going to a place, performing some repetitive activity and then going back for some meager quest rewards, story-wise. The Dreadfang is a nice weapon to pick up and while it’s quest line isn’t as maddening as the Exotic Sword quest, it’s still downright pedestrian.

Bad: Prison of Elders is Still Boring

I loved using Stormtrance and clearing out a dozen enemies in one go in Prison of Elders. Other than that, it’s still the same boring, repetitive, “Horde mode that’s not really a Horde mode” I’ve ever seen. It’s nice to have matchmaking for the 260 Light level version, even if the rewards are kind of “meh” (the new Exotics can drop from the big treasure chest but again, it’s random). The modifiers don’t change the time-worn strategy of camping in a corner and just killing everything. There aren’t even any new bonus objectives in between rounds so have fun dismantling mines AGAIN nearly a YEAR later.

Bad: Challenge of the Elders is A Joke

I can understand Bungie’s motives with Challenge of the Elders by offering something more accessible to casual players. And yes, it will change every week to offer something fresh. But as it stands, its difficulty is currently a joke. I hadn’t played Destiny in nearly 2.5 months and I soloed Challenge of the Elders on my first try. Say what you will about the original Prison of Elders but even the level 34 version demanded some skill. The Skolas fight was annoying but had good mechanics. Heck, even Qodron had good mechanics. Now I have a boss that detains me when I allow unbroken line of sight and a Pilot Servitor with Spider Tank mines. Such innovation, much difficulty. The points system doesn’t freshen up encounters – it just serves as a way to remind you that you’re not going fast enough when you start losing points. With this abject lack of challenge, why didn’t Bungie allow matchmaking for this mode?

Bad: Sniper Ammo Nerf

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Why? Just, why? The ammo nerf for Sniper Rifles doesn’t feel as terrible in this week’s Challenge of the Elders simply because of the Small Arms modifier. But it will definitely be a point of annoyance in the King’s Fall raid where snipers are integral to success. Why couldn’t Bungie balance this one class separately compared to the others? Or just 1000 Yard State separately?

Bad: Crucible is Still Laggy

The weapon balance changes will have their lovers and haters. I still like MIDA Multi-Tool and enjoy using the Antipodal Hindsight and SUROS Regime but simply hate the lack of bonus damage on The Last Word or the lack of addressing the phantom bullet syndrome on other hand-cannons. That’s purely subjective though. Destiny‘s PvP balance failings are due to Bungie simply making every weapon equally lackluster but that’s just me.

However, the lag in Crucible? My ability to rack up post-mortem kills a few seconds after dying? Whether it’s skill-based matchmaking still being in effect or whatever, Destiny‘s PvP lag will seemingly never go away. That, and the lack of good rewards for completing a match. Weren’t Legendaries supposed to be raining down, aside from the one Sterling Treasure you get for the weekly featured playlist?

Bad: No New PvP Maps

I said that this expansion is pretty much like House of Wolves in terms of its story content and end-game activity. That’s ultimately debatable because there are no new multiplayer maps. None, zip, nada. I know this update is PvE-focused but with the extensive changes made to Crucible, one would think that a single new map could be thrown in. It’s not even about liking the PvP because quite simply…

Ugly: This Is It (For Now)

You’re likely not getting anything new for another five months. And that’s the real kicker with this free update. For all the information Bungie never gave and how it kept its fan base hanging or the sheer hype about this being the most significant content drop since The Taken King (which it is compared to the past few special events but still doesn’t translate to new content), the April Update just feels “meh” overall. You could skip it and not feel any consequence at all, except probably missing out on the new gear (which will likely be reskinned later anyway). Destiny‘s April Update may be good for a few hours of time-killing but unless your friends are coming back as well and you really like hanging out with them or you can see yourself hunting gear sets for cosmetics sake or you really, really love the gunplay, there’s very little memorable content here to actually sink your teeth into.