Destiny 2 (PS4)
Discussion
I spent part of the morning in Crucible; I was on early and no one else was about. And I actually had fun.
Yes, yes, I know, PvP in Destiny sucks, right?
Well, the original game suffered from Bungie's seeming inability to balance the various weapon types and even the same-family-different archetypes, resulting in an occasionally fun but wildly unbalanced experience that devolved into forcing you to use on of maybe three or four weapons lest you get steamrollered in every gun battle. D2 - for now at least - seems to have a much better balance, I tried a few different set ups and they were all reasonably effective if you played to the strengths of the weapon, ie at a distance with a scout, close-medium range with auto rifle, extreme close up with a sword.
Equally, I was killed by a decent variety of weaponry, the only thing I don't recall seeing at least once was a rocket launcher kill. The lack of proximity explosions and tracking likely making them less viable than in D1. Oh, and no grenade launchers either, not that I'm surprised. Grenade launchers are awful at the moment, doing meagre damage, ricocheting unnaturally and at times bouncing off people instead of blowing them up. They need a buff to make them even remotely attractive, because as it stands there's simply no reason at all to use them.
Hopefully Crucible can maintain my interest as a viable alternative to PvE content, even in the short term, as a healthy crucible is good news for D2 as a whole.
Yes, yes, I know, PvP in Destiny sucks, right?
Well, the original game suffered from Bungie's seeming inability to balance the various weapon types and even the same-family-different archetypes, resulting in an occasionally fun but wildly unbalanced experience that devolved into forcing you to use on of maybe three or four weapons lest you get steamrollered in every gun battle. D2 - for now at least - seems to have a much better balance, I tried a few different set ups and they were all reasonably effective if you played to the strengths of the weapon, ie at a distance with a scout, close-medium range with auto rifle, extreme close up with a sword.
Equally, I was killed by a decent variety of weaponry, the only thing I don't recall seeing at least once was a rocket launcher kill. The lack of proximity explosions and tracking likely making them less viable than in D1. Oh, and no grenade launchers either, not that I'm surprised. Grenade launchers are awful at the moment, doing meagre damage, ricocheting unnaturally and at times bouncing off people instead of blowing them up. They need a buff to make them even remotely attractive, because as it stands there's simply no reason at all to use them.
Hopefully Crucible can maintain my interest as a viable alternative to PvE content, even in the short term, as a healthy crucible is good news for D2 as a whole.
Yeah I had a couple of matches this morning and had fun, I was only there to get one of the crucible milestone rewards but I did alright and it wasn't really frustrating.
I also finished the main story and hit level 20 this morning. Just need to level my power up a bit to unlock Nightfall strikes and then the raid.
I also finished the main story and hit level 20 this morning. Just need to level my power up a bit to unlock Nightfall strikes and then the raid.
SimianWonder said:
I spent part of the morning in Crucible; I was on early and no one else was about. And I actually had fun.
Yes, yes, I know, PvP in Destiny sucks, right?
Well, the original game suffered from Bungie's seeming inability to balance the various weapon types and even the same-family-different archetypes, resulting in an occasionally fun but wildly unbalanced experience that devolved into forcing you to use on of maybe three or four weapons lest you get steamrollered in every gun battle. D2 - for now at least - seems to have a much better balance, I tried a few different set ups and they were all reasonably effective if you played to the strengths of the weapon, ie at a distance with a scout, close-medium range with auto rifle, extreme close up with a sword.
Equally, I was killed by a decent variety of weaponry, the only thing I don't recall seeing at least once was a rocket launcher kill. The lack of proximity explosions and tracking likely making them less viable than in D1. Oh, and no grenade launchers either, not that I'm surprised. Grenade launchers are awful at the moment, doing meagre damage, ricocheting unnaturally and at times bouncing off people instead of blowing them up. They need a buff to make them even remotely attractive, because as it stands there's simply no reason at all to use them.
Hopefully Crucible can maintain my interest as a viable alternative to PvE content, even in the short term, as a healthy crucible is good news for D2 as a whole.
I ventured into PvP today for the bounty and like you I actually enjoyed it and found I was useful to the team sometimes. In D1 I hardly ventured into the crucible at all, but now I may go back for more.Yes, yes, I know, PvP in Destiny sucks, right?
Well, the original game suffered from Bungie's seeming inability to balance the various weapon types and even the same-family-different archetypes, resulting in an occasionally fun but wildly unbalanced experience that devolved into forcing you to use on of maybe three or four weapons lest you get steamrollered in every gun battle. D2 - for now at least - seems to have a much better balance, I tried a few different set ups and they were all reasonably effective if you played to the strengths of the weapon, ie at a distance with a scout, close-medium range with auto rifle, extreme close up with a sword.
Equally, I was killed by a decent variety of weaponry, the only thing I don't recall seeing at least once was a rocket launcher kill. The lack of proximity explosions and tracking likely making them less viable than in D1. Oh, and no grenade launchers either, not that I'm surprised. Grenade launchers are awful at the moment, doing meagre damage, ricocheting unnaturally and at times bouncing off people instead of blowing them up. They need a buff to make them even remotely attractive, because as it stands there's simply no reason at all to use them.
Hopefully Crucible can maintain my interest as a viable alternative to PvE content, even in the short term, as a healthy crucible is good news for D2 as a whole.
There didn't seem to be a lot going on tonight, so I ventured into Trials of the Nine with three others from the Destiny 2 PS4 Facebook community. Yes, that's a thing. Anyway, I had a blast. I said in a post yesterday that I was enjoying Crucible in Destiny 2 a lot more than in D1, and that applies here as well. It may simply be that it's new to a lot of people, so there's a much, much broader range of skill evident.
Not to beat around the bush, but we went flawless at the first attempt. I seem to be much more comfortable in Destiny 2's Crucible than I ever did in Destiny's, and the calibre of opposition varied hugely. We had a couple of matches were we absolutely steamrollered the other team, winning 6-0 and without them getting more than two or three kills over the six rounds, and there a were a couple that were a little tighter, particularly as you reached wins five and six, with teams displaying good movement, good strategy and only losing out because we had that little bit of luck when we needed it.
So, it seems this is still a good time to try Trials if you're unsure. There are enough players out there to ensure you're not just going up against MLG-pro streamers or the like, (which is what Trials of Osiris felt like at times) and even if you're very average at Crucible, like me, then you've still got a reasonable chance of getting to the bizarre new social space and claiming sweet, sweet loot. Speaking of which, I got the handcannon, autorifle and shotgun, all of which seem excellent.
If you've not done it before, give Trials a try this weekend. You might surprise yourself.
Not to beat around the bush, but we went flawless at the first attempt. I seem to be much more comfortable in Destiny 2's Crucible than I ever did in Destiny's, and the calibre of opposition varied hugely. We had a couple of matches were we absolutely steamrollered the other team, winning 6-0 and without them getting more than two or three kills over the six rounds, and there a were a couple that were a little tighter, particularly as you reached wins five and six, with teams displaying good movement, good strategy and only losing out because we had that little bit of luck when we needed it.
So, it seems this is still a good time to try Trials if you're unsure. There are enough players out there to ensure you're not just going up against MLG-pro streamers or the like, (which is what Trials of Osiris felt like at times) and even if you're very average at Crucible, like me, then you've still got a reasonable chance of getting to the bizarre new social space and claiming sweet, sweet loot. Speaking of which, I got the handcannon, autorifle and shotgun, all of which seem excellent.
If you've not done it before, give Trials a try this weekend. You might surprise yourself.
The thing I'm finding weird about the new levelling and clan rewards system is that it seems to remove a lot of the incentive to run specific activities to acquire them. You said you have the Trials handcannon Sims....well, so do I and, I didn't have to compete to get it. (it drops to clan members at a power lvel of 10 and you can then infuse it)
Adam already said that the raid drops weren't that good, and certainly not at a level that can't be found elsewhere in the world. So, why run the raid at all? Yes, it'll be fun with a bunch of mates etc. but, we have struggled to get a team online together for the whole of raid launch week (which still boggles my mind tbh!) and I can't really see that changing.
In the past, the raid/trials has been all about the loot. Getting the sought after weapons that are unattainable elsewehere and getting the most powerful gear. They seem to want people to do the activities just for the sake of doing the activities but, if the rewards aren't in line with the effort/difficulty/time required, I can't see the desire to do them lasting very long.
I certainly won't be raiding multiple characters.
Adam already said that the raid drops weren't that good, and certainly not at a level that can't be found elsewhere in the world. So, why run the raid at all? Yes, it'll be fun with a bunch of mates etc. but, we have struggled to get a team online together for the whole of raid launch week (which still boggles my mind tbh!) and I can't really see that changing.
In the past, the raid/trials has been all about the loot. Getting the sought after weapons that are unattainable elsewehere and getting the most powerful gear. They seem to want people to do the activities just for the sake of doing the activities but, if the rewards aren't in line with the effort/difficulty/time required, I can't see the desire to do them lasting very long.
I certainly won't be raiding multiple characters.
Speckle said:
The thing I'm finding weird about the new levelling and clan rewards system is that it seems to remove a lot of the incentive to run specific activities to acquire them. You said you have the Trials handcannon Sims....well, so do I and, I didn't have to compete to get it. (it drops to clan members at a power lvel of 10 and you can then infuse it)
You only received that due to Adam, Kaney, Jase and Matty going flawless on the friday. It's an attempt to really push and promote membership of a clan; after all, Destiny is a social game. Secondly, you got the handcannon for not participating and it needed infusing to be useful. For participating, for the hour invested, I ended up getting the handcannon, auto rifle, shotgun (x2!) at 290+ and bagged the pulse rifle from the aforementioned clan rewards.I'd say that was time well spent, wouldn't you?
Speckle said:
Adam already said that the raid drops weren't that good, and certainly not at a level that can't be found elsewhere in the world. So, why run the raid at all? Yes, it'll be fun with a bunch of mates etc. but, we have struggled to get a team online together for the whole of raid launch week (which still boggles my mind tbh!) and I can't really see that changing.
In the past, the raid/trials has been all about the loot. Getting the sought after weapons that are unattainable elsewehere and getting the most powerful gear. They seem to want people to do the activities just for the sake of doing the activities but, if the rewards aren't in line with the effort/difficulty/time required, I can't see the desire to do them lasting very long.
I certainly won't be raiding multiple characters.
You do have a point here, it's been really disappointing not to get a decent crack at the raid this week, especially so soon after launch, something we'll hopefully be able to rectify this week. However, I wouldn't say they've all been about the loot; I'd place far more value in having fun than I would in chasing gear, and the brief time spent in the raid with just the five of us last week was stupidly fun. Also, even if the raid weapons and armour are not all that, at least it drops legendaries at much higher power levels than you'll find in the wild, so there's still some incentive.In the past, the raid/trials has been all about the loot. Getting the sought after weapons that are unattainable elsewehere and getting the most powerful gear. They seem to want people to do the activities just for the sake of doing the activities but, if the rewards aren't in line with the effort/difficulty/time required, I can't see the desire to do them lasting very long.
I certainly won't be raiding multiple characters.
SimianWonder said:
You only received that due to Adam, Kaney, Jase and Matty going flawless on the friday. It's an attempt to really push and promote membership of a clan; after all, Destiny is a social game. Secondly, you got the handcannon for not participating and it needed infusing to be useful. For participating, for the hour invested, I ended up getting the handcannon, auto rifle, shotgun (x2!) at 290+ and bagged the pulse rifle from the aforementioned clan rewards.
I'd say that was time well spent, wouldn't you?
I know I got it because clanmates went flawless. It means that the trials handcannon is no longer an incentive for me to ever do trials because I unexpectedly got it anyway without participating. I also got Nightfall rewards this morning at 286 power, a scout rifle and some boots without setting foot in the Nightfall (which from what I've heard, is ridiculously hard this week). It seems strange to me that rewards are dropping for endgame activities I haven't done. Yes, it may encourage people to join a clan but, doesn't seem to encourage active participation...quite the opposite in fact.I'd say that was time well spent, wouldn't you?
I commend you on your successful trials run, you clearly found a good team to play with but, it wouldn't be just an hours investment for me. First, I would have to unlock trials by playing competitive crucible, then I believe you have to get 150 crucible kills which, based on my performance so far, would take me 15 - 20 games. At 10 mins a game, that is around 3 hours of an activity I don't enjoy. Once unlocked, there is no guarantee of a flawless run. I'll wager the rewards for failed attempts is somewhat less impressive than your haul.
SimianWonder said:
You do have a point here, it's been really disappointing not to get a decent crack at the raid this week, especially so soon after launch, something we'll hopefully be able to rectify this week. However, I wouldn't say they've all been about the loot; I'd place far more value in having fun than I would in chasing gear, and the brief time spent in the raid with just the five of us last week was stupidly fun. Also, even if the raid weapons and armour are not all that, at least it drops legendaries at much higher power levels than you'll find in the wild, so there's still some incentive.
I concede it isn't all about the loot but, I lost count of how many times i did VoG with the specific goal of getting my Fatebringer. I joined absolutely any raid run I possibly could as long as they hadn't reached Templar. I guess I just didn't enjoy the familiar frustrations of old last week, loitering on Destiny in the vague hope that enough people would be online who were a) at the same point in the raid as I was (ie. the very beginning 
and b) wanted to raid rather than PvP. The fact that happened in the week the raid launched is ridiculous - I'm still not certain why we never try to arrange a time in advance... Finally got a decent crack at the raid last night.
Any concerns or misgivings that may have been beginning to materialise have now gone. It was brilliant fun!
Strange (but, not in a bad way) that the order of the first three encounters changes each week, with the Calus fight always being at the end.
We did the dogs on our first attempt - I was clueless as to what we were doing and simply followed instructions. I was told that it did not usually go as smoothly as that!
Second was the Gauntlet which was really good fun. A relatively straight forward encounter once you've figured it out but, also one that the smallest mistake can completely screw up. I was driving my Warlock and the lack of precision on the jump was becoming frustrating by the end! We got through it in the end though
Drops weren't great. I got a powerful engram and a 296 sub-machine gun which seems decent enough and a bunch of tokens and a key I can't use until I've completed the whole raid. The key is apparently lost at reset if you don't use it.
All the banter and dicking about reminded me of raiding in D1, and that can only be a good thing,
In short, raid is lots of fun! Drops are a bit pants.
Any concerns or misgivings that may have been beginning to materialise have now gone. It was brilliant fun!
Strange (but, not in a bad way) that the order of the first three encounters changes each week, with the Calus fight always being at the end.
We did the dogs on our first attempt - I was clueless as to what we were doing and simply followed instructions. I was told that it did not usually go as smoothly as that!
Second was the Gauntlet which was really good fun. A relatively straight forward encounter once you've figured it out but, also one that the smallest mistake can completely screw up. I was driving my Warlock and the lack of precision on the jump was becoming frustrating by the end! We got through it in the end though
Drops weren't great. I got a powerful engram and a 296 sub-machine gun which seems decent enough and a bunch of tokens and a key I can't use until I've completed the whole raid. The key is apparently lost at reset if you don't use it.
All the banter and dicking about reminded me of raiding in D1, and that can only be a good thing,
In short, raid is lots of fun! Drops are a bit pants.
Edited by Speckle on Friday 22 September 10:16
Flat-out said:
Adam and I 2-manned opening the hidden chests after you went. It was tricky but doable.
Got effing shards, I mean tokens, from those.
Hopefully I won't be busy this weekend and will finally step foot in trials.
I shall have to give that a go later.Got effing shards, I mean tokens, from those.
Hopefully I won't be busy this weekend and will finally step foot in trials.
Might even
Depends how much of a challenge you're up for
Like I mentioned yesterday, I'm disliking the Crucible in all honesty. Even quick play is turning into both teams huddling together waiting for the other to make a move. 6 v 6 meant it was inevitable that people would branch off/spawn in the middle etc. It's just boring the way it is. Coupled with horrific lag (I know my internet is awful 
) and at times, I'd rather just patrol.
The lag is an interesting one. I have zero issues with Overwatch, Battlefield and even FIFA. We usually play pro clubs- each of us controlling a single player on the same side. Trust me, if I was lagging, those pricks would kick me out of the club.
Why Destiny,
because bungo.
) and at times, I'd rather just patrol.The lag is an interesting one. I have zero issues with Overwatch, Battlefield and even FIFA. We usually play pro clubs- each of us controlling a single player on the same side. Trust me, if I was lagging, those pricks would kick me out of the club.
Why Destiny,
because bungo.
Flat-out said:
Like I mentioned yesterday, I'm disliking the Crucible in all honesty. Even quick play is turning into both teams huddling together waiting for the other to make a move. 6 v 6 meant it was inevitable that people would branch off/spawn in the middle etc. It's just boring the way it is. Coupled with horrific lag (I know my internet is awful ) and at times, I'd rather just patrol.
The lag is an interesting one. I have zero issues with Overwatch, Battlefield and even FIFA. We usually play pro clubs- each of us controlling a single player on the same side. Trust me, if I was lagging, those pricks would kick me out of the club.
Why Destiny,
because bungo.
Yup, I had all sorts of networking error problems with D2 that I've never had with any other game. Their netcode isn't optimised and, if your connection is already ropey, that is unlikely to help matters!) and at times, I'd rather just patrol.The lag is an interesting one. I have zero issues with Overwatch, Battlefield and even FIFA. We usually play pro clubs- each of us controlling a single player on the same side. Trust me, if I was lagging, those pricks would kick me out of the club.
Why Destiny,
because bungo.
I've yet to enter crucible with a team, maybe that will be more fun than on my own?
Flat-out said:
Yep, it is much, much better when in a team. Still, for me, playing in a team should enhance rather than mitigate solo play. I'm sure they'll tweak it and I see Big Team Battle being added in DLC. 
Hmmm, maybe I'll jump in competitive over the next few days, as long as some of the big boys come along to hold my hand Gassing Station | Video Games | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff