Yesterday, a massive dump of Destiny 2 gameplay information dropped on our collective laps, and some writers such as myself were able to go hands-on, for the first time, with the latest from Bungie. These hands-on sessions let us get a better sense of the finer details of Destiny’s 2 gameplay that we didn’t necessarily get during the live stream. One of those finer details that we were able to get a taste of was weapon customization. So let’s dive into a bit of speculation shall we?
Destiny 2 is introducing a lot of new changes. Bungie is changing the ways that players interact with the world, how they receive the story, and even how hear is dealt with. Gone are the typical weapon categories that governed which weapons went into which slot. Now you have Kinetic, Energy, and Power slots that allow much more freedom for weapon types which lets players exhibit more control over their loadouts. During our hands on time with Destiny 2 at the gameplay reveal we noticed something else about weapons that wasn’t present in the first game: Mods.
While setting up my load out before jumping into the Inverted Spire Strike, I noticed an empty slot on the bottom of the weapons I had in my inventory that was designated for mods. This was separate from the usual perks and nodes that players are already familiar with in Destiny. It’s not entirely clear just yet how much freedom these slots will offer but the prospect of being able to control even one aspect of a weapon in Destiny 2 is not something that should be quickly overlooked. One oft requested feature for the upcoming sequel was further gear customization, especially options that prove to be more meaningful to gameplay and less about changing aesthetics. When speaking with the Art Director for Destiny 2, Michael Zak, the team wasn’t ready to go into detail concerning customization as a whole but was keen on sharing that they plan to take the systems introduced late in Destiny’s life -such as ornaments – and expand upon them.
Destiny’s meta game often saw a few specific weapons rise to prominence after each round of patches, but mods can really alter how that works. Players could potentially take often overlooked weapons and spec them towards their preferred play style in exciting ways. It’s a way to make even the most basic of firearms a viable option, depending on how Bungie implements the system.
Of course, it does bring up the concern of balance. With more options comes more opportunities to break a game, especially on the competitive side of things. If this mod system is indeed adding more freedom to Destiny 2’s progression it will need to be closely monitored. However, if handled well it can be an evolution of the current system for the better.
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