A Rough Launch
I feel the need to open this review with a somewhat controversial take: I’m have never cared for the Halo series. While I was well and truly an Xbox fanboy, I never felt its flagship FPS was anything spectacular, and I hate its “Grunts” with a burning fervor. Seriously, they’re somehow more annoying than Rabbids.
Why open my review of the last major Destiny 2 expansion with an attack on a series from the same developer that shares much of the same DNA as it? Because I feel the fact that I absolutely adore the Destiny games shows how different they are to Bungie’s previous franchise. Destiny 2 has RPG influences, a more unique narrative, a heavier focus on co-op, and easily is one of the best looking games of all time.
It wasn’t always smooth sailing for Destiny 2. At launch, there was limited content. The end game was criticized for being unrewarding and grindy, the best cosmetics were only available through the Eververse Store, XP was being throttled by Bungie, who later apologised and made adjustments to the system. Content would be locked behind DLC, weapons and abilities were extremely uneven, and more.

The Good, The Bad, and the Lightfall
Post-launch updates have been received to mixed reviews from Destiny 2’s playerbase. Most agree that The Witch Queen was terrific and that Lightfall is woeful. I recently sped through the DLC campaigns with friends and I’m not gonna lie, Lightfall was rough – at least we finally got hoverboards after its launch. With Lightfall leaving a slightly sour taste in my mouth (activities, weapons, and cosmetics were decent, it was just the story that was lacking) I found myself cautious about The Final Shape. Thankfully, it is the best DLC Bungie has ever created…

The End of the Light and Darkness Saga
The story for Destiny truly is massive and far too much to recap here. What I will say though, is that The Witness has finally caught up to The Traveler on Earth. They then cut a hole into The Traveler and are attempting to corrupt it from within, bringing about a permanent frozen form of undeath known as The Final Shape. The Guardians sent Crow inside The Traveler and are now following him alongside Zavala. The stakes have never been higher.
From the start, The Final Shape is gorgeous with extraordinarily designed environments. Even for the sci-fi aesthetic that Bungie have created, The Final Shape brings more unique elements than we’ve seen before. Inside The Traveler, players will see elements of Earth they are familiar with (trees, cliffs, grassy meadows, etc). All bring an air of tranquil beauty that is in stark contrast to some of Destiny’s planets and interiors. The Witness’, however, begins to corrupt those environments, twisting them into something more nightmarish or outright bizarre. He’s also manifesting his imagination inside The Traveler, making for some truly unique features (giant, freakish face sculptures spring to mind).
This leads to a more unique visual experience that while slightly straying from what players are accustomed to, doesn’t venture too far into the fantastical to be taken seriously and truly offers some of the best environments we’ve seen in Destiny 1 and 2. I was thankful for the moments between missions where we weren’t in combat, as I could take in some of the jaw-dropping environment designs.

An Ever-present Story
Speaking of those “in-between” moments, they are also used to show a ton of story. Perhaps I’m being hyperbolic, but when I say a “ton” I’m not referring to immense battles breaking out, characters being injured or dying or anything that cataclysmic. Rather, I’m talking about the story itself unfolding, but also interactions between characters, as well as characters and the player that reveal backstories, motivations, or even character itself.
There is more going on (while still being perfectly digestible) in The Final Shape than any other expansion or the launch build of the game. Events as they unfold are perfectly understandable, and characters react to them and in ways that make sense. I’m thankful for the amount of care Bungie have given The Final Shape’s narrative, even more so that it feels like a farewell of sorts from many of the staff.

The Best Content In Years
The Final Shape introduces new enemy types that I’ll admit, have varying degrees of success. The new flying mobs pose little threat. but I do enjoy them from a visual perspective, as they deviate from literally every other enemy type in the game. It’s impressive Bungie are able to surprise us after all this time, even if it isn’t from a strategy perspective.
Other encounters require the player to stand in light wells and become radiant, supercharging their offensive power and allowing them to damage certain enemies.
At present, it seems as though Destiny 2 will wrap up major campaigns, with minor updates and self-contained episodes moving forward. 7 years is a long run for any game, but if every expansion was on the level of The Final Shape, Destiny 2 would have easily reached a decade. I should say again that not all of the blame for the weaker elements of the game falls on Bungie, but a lot of pressure from Activision assured that it would stumble more than it ever should have.

Conclusion
To summarise my experience with Destiny 2, I would say that everything there is to love about the game has never been stronger. Characters, weapons, visuals, sound design and the narrative itself are all phenomenal, even if the future for the game is uncertain. Still, if this is the end, the is one hell of a bang to go out on.
A former journalist turned content creator and blogger, Nickbait has over 12 years experience covering games and tech. He aims to bring his worlds of support work and content creation together one day.
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