There are a few other things to dissect though. Research firm like Cowen and Company believe that the split from Activision was due to the difference in vision over the game’s direction. Schreier notes that an annualized format of content release was a source of tension as well. Activision is also apparently looking to strengthen its own brands like Call of Duty, even if that means a short-term financial slump from losing Destiny.

"Those who have been in touch with reports over the years know that the situation between Bungie and Activision wasn’t quite so cut and dry."

Not that it matters to fans cheering at Activision’s removal from the equation. The Destiny subreddit wants to proclaim this as “Destiny Freedom Day”. Others have suddenly become more interested in purchasing Eververse items since Activision is not involved. Many believe that Bungie will finally have a chance to shine without an overbearing publisher looking over their shoulder.

Those who have been in touch with reports over the years know that the situation between Bungie and Activision was more than a little complicated. When the much-hyped 10 year deal was penned between both companies, Bungie agreed to deliver numerous Destiny titles and expansions in between those sequels under Activision’s label. Plans went for a toss when Destiny had been delayed from its original 2013 release date to early 2014. It then received another delay to September 2014.

Reports from Schreier and high-profile departures like writer Joseph Staten and composer Martin O’Donnell indicated that all was not well in development though. Once Destiny launched, it was a jumbled mess of plot points, shallow gameplay, fundamental design flaws and networking issues. Such issues were exacerbated with The Dark Below, Destiny’s first major DLC. It featured mission maps similar to the base game but backwards and a buggy as hell raid. Don’t even try to remind players about the process of re-leveling Exotics.

"Destiny had some bumps here and there but was at its peak going into the reveal of Destiny 2 in May 2017."

House of Wolves would improve things, especially for PvP since Trials of Osiris was introduced for hardcore competitive players to indulge in, but not by a huge margin. We eventually learned that the final product of Destiny was meant to encompass the base game, the first two DLC and The Taken King expansion. When Destiny was apparently rebooted in 2014, a spanner was thrown into plans and the additional content was sold off as separate DLC.

However, after The Taken King, Bungie seemed to be back on track. Festival of the Lost was neat. Sparrow Racing League was pretty cool. Crimson Days was lame but hey, new content, and the April 2017 update provided plenty of new, interesting things for PvE fans to engage with. For the most part, it seemed that Destiny was firing on all cylinders even if Bungie made many of us skeptical with its introduction of the Eververse.

Then we learned about Rise of Iron, Destiny’s next expansion, releasing in September 2016. Why was Rise of Iron releasing in September 2016?

According to Schreier, Destiny 2 was pushed back to 2017 because Bungie had rebooted development. Luke Smith was appointed director and the previous director left the company (but that fact would only be revealed later). As for Rise of Iron, it released to a middling reception. The Wrath of the Machine raid was praised but the story missions and overall content were criticized for regressing from The Taken King’s brilliance. The Festival of the Lost returned as a microtransaction-laden debacle but Bungie made good on things with The Dawning and Age of Triumph. Destiny had some bumps here and there but was at its peak going into the reveal of Destiny 2 in May 2017.

"Eventually, Schreier would report how Bungie renegotiated terms with Activision for Destiny 2. Its previous content cycle was thought to be too rigorous and producing so much content was deemed too difficult."

Bungie unveiled some controversial changes for the sequel but it’s a testament to the will of the community that things still looked pretty good. We heard about Lost Sectors, Adventures, World Quests, and tons more content to sink our eager teeth into. Destiny 2 would go on to become an incredible financial success at launch. Critics even lauded it for being an improvement over the first game.

However, as time passed, it was hounded by numerous issues concerning the end-game. Exotics were useless. The raid meant nothing and thus, hitting max Power level meant nothing. The Lost Sectors were rendered useless in the end-game simply because they gave lower level loot. PvP was a snooze-fest and encompassed team-shooting above all. A number of awesome looking cosmetics, previously earned through in-game activities like Strikes and the raid, were locked behind Eververse. Bungie’s decisions when it came to things like one-time use shaders, XP throttling, charging for Heroic Strikes, locking the base game’s raid behind the purchase of DLC and stingy seasonal events didn’t help matters.

Eventually, Schreier would report on how the developer renegotiated terms with Activision for Destiny 2. Its previous content cycle was thought to be too rigorous; producing so much content was deemed too difficult. So instead, Bungie would focus more on cosmetic content through the Eververse and Seasons. As more cosmetic items landed up on Tess Everis’s shelves over the months, it seemed like Schreier’s report had plenty of truth to it.

"Bungie’s track record when it comes to development has been less than stellar. It rebooted Destiny 1 and 2 before their subsequent launches."

Of course, there was still DLC like Curse of Osiris and Warmind. Activision-owned studios like High Moon Studios and Vicarious Visions were assisting Bungie with content as the latter spent 2018 trying to get back on the good side of its longtime fans. It talked more and more about catering to the hobbyist, changing up its weapon slot system and bringing back random rolls for weapons and armour. Masterworks, Exotic revamps, Nightfall Challenges, Bounties and much more were introduced before Forsaken to appease the hardcore player. Bungie even announced the Annual Pass, something that would provide a consistent stream of “end-game” content after Forsaken, as it seemingly moved towards away from more cinematic adventures towards a much deeper grind.

In September 2018, Forsaken launched and was met with praise from critics and hardcore fans. Sure, there was dissent about the heavy RNG-based nature of Bungie’s content (like earning Exotics) and it also didn’t help that some activities were time-gated. But Forsaken delivered a good story (by Destiny standards), a great raid and tons of new loot to collect. The majority of Forsaken was also accessible to all players. Gating content behind high Power requirements, boring quest grinds and baffling puzzles really didn’t stick out as major issues until Black Armory came around.

If you’ve been keeping track of the story thus far, you might have noticed a common theme: Bungie’s track record when it comes to development has been less than stellar. It rebooted Destiny 1 and 2 before their subsequent launches. Throughout the history of both games, Bungie would also prove to be completely out of touch with its community’s needs, taking months to fix long-standing issues.

"For all intents and purposes, Bungie going independent and being free to pursue its own development cycle for Destiny is good."

Only a major exodus of players following the launch of Destiny 2 and Curse of Osiris (not to mention the failure of events like Faction Rally, Iron Banner and The Dawning 2017) would motivate the developer to sit down and actually address concerns. Even now, Destiny 2 is still lacking on issues like competitive PvP matchmaking, endgame economy items like Enhancement Cores and not locking DLC content that players paid for behind ridiculous requirements. And yes, one-time user shaders, awesome cosmetics locked behind Eververse, time-gated content and heavy RNG are still problematic. Did we mention Trials of the Nine was removed before Forsaken and has yet to return?

For all intents and purposes, Bungie going independent and being free to pursue its own development cycle for Destiny is good. However, the enthusiasm for the developer’s approach doesn’t look all that different from when it split from Microsoft.

“Finally, we’d get to see the developer separated from the evil corporation and free to pursue its own vision!” “Finally, we’d get the very best that Bungie could deliver!” That wasn’t quite the case though, as evidenced by the barreling rollercoaster that is the Destiny franchise. I’m no fan of Activision (especially following their treatment of Call of Duty creators Vince Zampella and Jason West) but reading about the additional time and resources, not to mention the new deals it negotiated with Bungie, makes it look like a publisher tried to help rather than impede Destiny’s progress.

"But hey, if you’re a Destiny player, all of this should be very familiar. Destiny has offered experiences to a player base that simply can’t get enough of it."

What this split means for the future of Destiny 2 is still unknown. Cowen and Company believes that Destiny 3 is still coming in 2020. Rumours regarding its content and features along with a greater emphasis on RPG mechanics have been doing the rounds for a few months. Will the studio repeat the same mistakes as before? What’s the plan for content after the Annual Pass? Will we receive another expansion and another Annual Pass until Destiny 3 comes out? Will Bungie scrap the idea of sequels altogether? Will Destiny go free to play? What’s the plan for Eververse? How likely is it that Bungie announces Destiny 3’s exclusivity on the Epic Games Store for PC in the coming years? Will the core issues with leadership that caused Staten and O’Donnell to leave in the first place be fixed?

Blame Activision all you want but Bungie was and still is the company developing the series. How it addressed the issues that plagued both games at their respective launches is available for all to see. It’s currently fine with the stingy RNG for Exotics and Power level system that makes much of the loot irrelevant. It’s the company that said Black Armory’s Niobe Labs was for anyone that was “smart and brave enough to attempt it” in a now-deleted tweet after frustrated attempts by players. At least it went ahead and unlocked the last Forge when no one could figure out the solution.

If you’re a Destiny player, all of this should be very familiar. Destiny has offered experiences to a player base that simply can’t get enough. I should know, having been part of that player base for a few years. Even when the content didn’t quite measure up, I plunked down my own money and waited till launch to join the hype train. Destiny has been a franchise that’s provided some truly amazing moments while simultaneously making me question the numerous blunders that could have been avoided. Looking back, at the end of the day, maybe everyone just wants that same kind of experience without the fear of Activision mucking everything up.

"Can Bungie adhere to long-time fans and become successful in its own right? Can it attract even more players to its franchise in the coming years?"

For Bungie, the real test begins now. Without the big bad villainous publisher for people to deflect blame to when things go wrong, it will take the brunt of not delivering worthwhile content and financial failure. Will it sink or swim in the process? This is an industry that’s being defined more by games-as-a-service titles like Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 and Fortnite: Battle Royale. That’s not including beloved free to play games like Path of Exile or Warframe. Additional competition from blockbusters like Anthem and The Division 2 is also coming. Can Bungie adhere to long-time fans and achieve the potential that Destiny seemingly promised all those years ago? Can it attract even more players in the coming years?

It’s hard to say but unlike October 2007, this isn’t a Bungie that inspires confidence. It’s a Bungie that makes me cautious of investing time or money in their products. Here’s hoping for the future to change. As a member of the Bungie.net forums so aptly put it though: We’re finally going to see who was responsible for Destiny’s failings – Bungie or Activision.

Looks like Destiny: The Collection is real! Today, Bungie and Activision shared a brand new trailer announcing the bundle, which will come, in one package, with the base Destiny game, as well as all of its expansions- The Dark Below, House of Wolves, The Taken King, and of course, the upcoming Rise of Iron.

Basically, if you haven’t yet jumped in on Destiny yet, but want to now, this package is the way to go- the best bit here is that by now, most of Destiny‘s various bugs and problems have been largely worked out, and we are left with a game that largely lives up to its initial promise. This bundle will let players go through dozens of hours of content just among the five campaigns included- and that’s nothing to say of the end game content, which is truly endless.

Destiny: The Collection launches on September 20 on Xbox One and PlayStation 4. You can check out its announcement trailer below.

Destiny’s second expansion, House of Wolves, launches tomorrow. And while discussion of this DLC pack has often centered on what it doesn’t have (notably- it has no end game raid, which is widely considered to be the best part of the Destiny experience), it is pretty loaded to the brim with other stuff.

This includes an all new leveling mechanic for higher level gear, to sort of future proof it from becoming obsolete when level caps are raised (like what happened when The Dark Below came out last November), as well as an all new multiplayer mode, the Prison of Elders. The Prison of Elders is a new coopearative horde mode, and it should hopefully offer some longevity to the game and variety to the players by presenting an all new game style.

That aside, House of Wolves also has new armor, new weapons, new gear, new maps for the PvP Crucible mode, and a brand new strike.

House of Wolves will be released tomorrow, May 19, at 10 AM PDT. That translates to 12PM CT and 1PM ET. Bungie announced the exact release timing on Twitter today.

The closer we get to the release of Destiny: House of Wolves DLC the more information we get about the new content. We’ve already seen a launch trailer that is geared to wetting our whistle while we continue to wait for the actual content to drop. Even better is the launch trailer is brand new video released by Arekkz Gaming that is geared towards showing people how to reach level 34 as quickly as possible. By doing this, obviously gamers are going to have more success when it comes to playing House of Wolves in general.

As the video points out, as long as you have the right items and a little bit of luck, you can actually hit that magical level 34 in the very first day. Some of the steps needed to be taken are not all that easy, but when they are laid out, as long as you are a devoted Destiny player, it doesn’t’ seem all that impossible either.

The first thing people need to understand about getting to level 34 early on in House of Wolves is that they need to start off at a certain level. As the video points out, you’ll need to finish off this particular march with 168 light. In order to start down this path, the video tells us that the first steps should be relatively easily. You’ll need to upgrade an exotic piece of armor. In order to do this, you’ll need 1,500 glimmer as well as 25 of the character class specific materials and one exotic shard. The good news is that most people who are playing the game enough that they care about getting to level 34 are going to have this on hand.

In order to see the next steps, check out the video below. House of Wolves for Destiny is due for launch on May 19.

Nonetheless, there’s plenty to look forward to in May, whether you’re gaming the PC or consoles, interested in a little space murder or some ol’ fashioned World War II era murder. Can every game on this list deliver? Maybe they will and maybe they won’t but they’re well worth looking forward to. Here are our picks for the top 5 games releasing in May 2015.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

CD Projekt RED’s open world action RPG is easily the biggest release of May, if not the entire year. And we don’t mean that in terms of just hype – The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt boasts a huge, expansive world filled with roughly 100 hours of content. You can bed several women, enter relationships, take up monster bounties, hunt bandits, slaughter bar patrons over a verbal slight, take part in blood rituals, race horses, sail on the wide open sea and maybe play the story too if you’re in the mood.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will also feature some of the prettiest visuals we’ve seen in a medieval fantasy game with zero loading times while travelling the continent of the Northern Realms. Whether you’ve played the previous games or not, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt will easily demand your attention when it releases on May 19th for Xbox One, PS4 and PC.

Destiny: House of Wolves

House of Wolves isn’t a full retail release for Destiny. In fact, some would strain to even call it an expansion. Nonetheless, it brings a wide range of changes and new additions to the world of Destiny. Aside from a new Social Space, new story missions and new bounties, the launch of House of Wolves will serve to make all equipment relevant. Vault of Glass, Crota’s End and even starting Legendary gear from the game’s release in September can now be levelled to the new damage and light cap. But that’s not all.

There will be plenty of new Exotics, new Vendor gear, new Crucible Legendaries, a new daily objective system for PvP, the Prison of Elders mode, Trials of Osiris and much more. Sure, the unique content won’t rival the likes of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, much less Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep for Borderlands 2 but it should easily add a few months of playtime to Destiny’s end game. House of Wolves is out on May 19th for Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS3 and PS4.

Project CARS

Finally, after delay upon delay upon delay, Slightly Mad Studios’ Project CARS is finally releasing for current gen consoles. It’s amazing to think the racing simulator has been delayed so many times, especially when you consider how the previous gen versions had been cancelled in the process. Now that we can look forward to its release on May 7th, we can focus on the features being offered.

Project CARS will have an impressive 52 tracks and 67 cars in the initial release (or at least in the first DLC after launch). There will be a variety of different paths to take and tons of events of events including some that can stretch for multiple days. Physics simulation also looks to be top-tier with Slightly Mad enlisting the help of Ben Collins, who worked as the “Stig” on the popular Top Gear show. There’s a lot of hope riding on Project CARS and we can’t wait to see what it offers in this era of Gran Turismo and Forza Motorsport.

Magicka 2

Co-op wizarding hijinks return in Magicka 2, except this time you’ll be in a world without magic and have to work from the ground up to wipe out evil. Be careful though – all the other remaining wizards have pretty much lost their minds and begun attacking each other. Luckily, there will be a dynamic spell casting system to allow you and your allies to take on any opposition while cracking appropriate wisecracks.

Though Magicka 2 may not seem like the biggest game of May, especially compared to some of the other heavy-hitters, it looks to be a strong follow-up to its surprisingly successful predecessor. If you had even a smidgeon of fun smiting enemies in the original, then Magicka 2 warrants a look when it releases on May 26th for PC.

Wolfenstein: The Old Blood

MachineGames’ Wolfentein: The New Order wasn’t meant to overwhelm us with its quality. However, if you let it, the intense dual-wielding and murdering of alternate World War II history was a fun exercise in first person shooting. Wolfenstein: The Old Blood will be going backward in several ways, focusing on two episodes leading up to the events of the first game and explaining how Wilhelm “Deathshead” Strasse acquired the technology needed to rule the world in The New Order.

The second episode focuses on a Nazi archaeologist and several different artifacts that could possibly contain dark and ancient powers. Various teasers have indicated that this includes Nazi zombies. And how can you say no to Nazi zombies? Wolfenstein: The Old Blood is out on May 5th digitally for Xbox One, PS4 and PC with a retail release on May 15th onwards Europe.

A Reddit user has compiled a list of things that they think you Destiny players should be doing, or have done already, before The House of Wolves DLC pack drops. The “advice” is more akin to a list of ways to possibly make the game even more heavy on grinding, but there is a measure of truth in the words as doing most of these things will benefit you.

Step one is to “Max out your marks, glimmer, and planetary materials.” The general idea here is to keep your currency at a high level so that when the DLC does drop, you’ll have funds to spare. Step two is to “Edge” your cryptarch and faction reputations, meaning you should bring yourself to the threshold of ranking up so that when you drop into the House of Wolves, you can cross the line in the sand and reap the rewards.

Step three asks that you “Stock up on completed +100 bounties” because you’re going to need them to help rank up your crucible reputation. The fourth and optional element of the advice is to “Complete, but don’t turn in, exotic weapon bounties.”. If you complete, but don’t turn in your Exotic bounties, you’ll have them available as soon as the DLC drops. The idea being you stand a better chance of getting something better than you currently can get if you wait.

Check out the full guide here.