Destiny - Let's Roll!

[FPAlpha]

I guess sooner or later Bungie will have to change this the same as Blizzard when they patched Loot 2.0 and revitalized an essentially dead Diablo 3.

My guardian is now level 19 and i'm quite enjoying it though not as much as i expected. Will try to get to 20 today to unlock endgame content but even then special raids like the Vault of Glass are out of reach because i don't know anyone personally who plays Destiny to attempt it.

However i still hope there will be enough to do other than grinding for better gear.

Another topic:

A few days ago a new area was unlocked in the Tower that revealed a new contact/bounties/rewards for the Queen but i have noticed numerous doors or areas still locked and i was wondering if there are still some surprises left that Bungie will reveal later on either through DLC's or just plain additions to the game. They sure have boasted some big claims, i.e. to have game content planned for up to 10 years and i'd like to see them try and get Destiny to ba constant in gaming.

They will have to make some significant changes though to keep the game interesting. I'd lower the cosmetic stuff, i.e. the spaceship, ground vehicles and "clothes" you can get because they have absolutely no gameplay function and are just bling.
Mass Effect is a very good example where the design team improved on the whole franchise by listening to fans and changing things, e.g. the boring Mako on the planetary surface exploration parts in ME1.

Let's see if Destiny 2 or the DLC's bring in some needed changes.

 

[SPCTRE]

BTW, if you're looking for more extensive stats on your toons or an easier way to share them, I recommend Destiny Tracker.

This is my hunter's profile.

 

[SPCTRE]

 

[martok2112]

^LMAO!!!!! That is great!

On a serious note, apparently, PlayStation Network is down. And everything about it smells like a hack. The Sony website says PSN is online.... and yet, all over the world, people are reporting log in problems...many of whom are wanting to play Destiny on PS4. According to a series of reports I'd read at the Forbes website, it looks like a cyberterrorist group of punkassed hackers might be responsible. They claimed responsibility for a prior attack on not just PSN, but Xbox Live and other gaming services as well. They stated that they're doing it for the simple thrill of anarchy, and for little more than the fact that they have a lot of time on their hands, and that they wanted to see if they could evade a search after launching such an attack. Apparently, they also made a bomb threat against a Sony sponsored airline. The FBI are hunting these people down.

If this is indeed a hack, it is one that is so well executed (and I do not say that with any sense of admiration whatsoever...I say it with the utmost contempt) that Sony is thinking that everything is hunky-dory, when it is most certainly not. Then again, reading further on some reports, it is apparently nothing more than somehow they manage to overwhelm gaming servers (specifically ones that serve games like Call of Duty Ghosts and Destiny, among others) with communications requests, making logging into gaming services practically impossible.

Sorry if that sounds like a rant, but I murderously hate hackers.

 

[Servo]

Sorry if that sounds like a rant, but I murderously hate hackers.

 

[martok2112]

Sorry if that sounds like a rant, but I murderously hate hackers.

ikr

 

[Kemaiku]

And yet I played CoD on PSN yesterday and today without incident, must have bene localised to the US.

 

[martok2112]

It was worldwide....happened around 4am my time (Central).Far as I could tell, the outage lasted about an hour.

 

[martok2112]

Tried playing Destiny via Remote Play on PS Vita. (Since we were watching The Walking Dead on the main TV).

Looks great, responds great...but it's lousy for Crucible...LOL! I was lucky to get two kills out of a Clash. Problem is, even if you lower the look sensitivity, the sticks are so small that when you fire your weapon and try to track your target, you can overshoot.

I am really eager to get PlayStation TV, which will allow me to play my PS4 (and my Vita) on my HDTV in my bedroom if others are out watching Netflix on PS3 on the main tv. (Truth be told, my bedroom HD is better than the living room HD. )

 

[Kemaiku]

Ouch

http://www.geeksaresexy.net/2014/10...y-border-halo-world-of-warcraft-online-video/

It's a good thing the PS4 was able to cakewalk the Gen 8 battle before this came out as it's exclusive...

 

[FPAlpha]

Yeah well.. unfortunately they're not wrong.

Now that my Titan has reached level 20 i've unlocked most of the modes (i think) and it now only about upgrading gear by playing repetetive missions you already know from the main storyline.

There are daily heroic strike missions that are just single missions from the main game with a few modifiers.

Crucible may be still fun but PvP is a part of every shooter nowadays and i haven't seen anything groundbreaking or new there.

Loot is just so damn slow.. you play for an hour or more and barely get anything good or worthwile, certainly nothing that would require you to change or adapt your gamestyle (i got a Rocket Launcher that produces some smaller cluster rockets when it hits the enemy.. that's about my coolest weapon so far).

There's tons of factions or clans in the game where you can visit their vendors and supposedly can buy gear from them but getting their vendor up a level to unlock the stuff is just so tedious and takes forever.

Now i'm honestly regretting buying this from the PSN store to both test that feature out (if you don't want to give out your credit card data to Sony it's a major hassle and i certainly don't trust Sony with my cc data) and because i figured i don't want to change discs everytime i want to play a different game. Problem now is i can't even sell Destiny.

Anyway.. i'm losing more and more interest in the game.. the story was lacklustre (it feels enormously like the first part of a very long story and nothing really happens), gameplay is so so (still like the weapon upgrade system once you aquire a unique weapon) and i can't shake the feeling that tons of stuff is yet to be revealed but what we got is certainly not worth the 70 bucks.

To sum it up.. it's Diablo 3 all over again, especially when it comes to Loot. At least in Diablo 3 the characters played very differently so there was an incentive to create a character for each class and try it out, with Destiny not so much. It's neither an MMO nor is it a good story with tacked on multiplayer parts.. it's something in the middle and thus does nothing really well.

Oh well.. i have it now and maybe in a few months they will introduce something that will rekindle my interest. In the meantime i'll do the occasional special mission or spend some rounds in PvP while i play upcoming games like AC:Unity or Dragon Age 3.

I am a little bit mad that i fell for the hype but the last it happened to me was with the new Star Wars Trilogy so i still consider myself above average in that regard.

 

[martok2112]

The brutally honest, brutally two-part question I have to ask about the Brutally Honest trailer for Destiny is:

Did the Brutally Honest announcer actually play the game? Or is he just going by the grievances made by the players who are pretty frustrated with the game's loot system? I am Brutally, Honestly thinking the latter.

I've managed to get (after untold hours of playing) two Exotic helmets, and two Exotic primary weapons. My armor is even stocked out as One exotic and three Legendary pieces. But there are other players who have probably logged just as much time as me, and probably don't have a third of what I have....the system is that freaking random.

Dinklebot hit the nail on the head with both of his comic parodies.

 

[SPCTRE]

On Saturday I had a buddy over and gave him a short demo. (He really likes Borderlands, Diablo and the CoD franchise.)

His takeaway after an hour or so was that all the existing flaws are easily redeemable via balance patches (and eventually, DLC). I can't disagree.

 

[FPAlpha]

I can disagree

The problem is not the balancing of the game but game design itself.

For example:

Missions are very one dimensional. Go there - kill all stuff and at the end kill the big guy

Loot drops are very random and very infrequent (i have a character level 21 and the only things that drop are the xth variation of standard weapons with some modifiers, no legendary or even exotic gear)

Too much cosmetic gear, i.e. vehicles and wardrobe (though it is a nice way to show off for anyone who wants to)

Raids can only be done by established groups out of your friends list. I understand the reasoning that they are ultrahard and need a well coordinated team but automatically taking away even the possibility for relatively strangers to attempt a raid is the wrong way. There is no chat system and matchmaking for raids.
It may be a bad idea to attempt a raid with strangers but the possibility should be offered including a voice chat option.

Endgame missions are just modified story missions by increasing aggressiveness of the enemy or to put some strain on your character by limiting ammo drops and such (that they are just modified story missions really pissed me off when i noticed it).

I think there have been some bad design choices initially in the game and if that can be corrected i don't know. What always works are the PvP areas because it's your skill vs another human and your opponent won't usually just blindly advance into your fire or remain on the spot to take your shots.

DLC's will probably only bring more of the same just with a different description and a few new surroundings (that are already in the game but are currently locked away).

I fear that if Destiny doesn't make a big leap in nearly all areas apart from graphics i don't believe it will be a title that will be still played several years from now like it happened with Halo.

 

[SPCTRE]

^ There is no disagreement here beyond semantics.

Balance patches don't have to be limited to encounter and progression mechanics. Adjustments to loot systems (i.e. drop variances/RNG) are also a form of balancing.

 

[Servo]

Loot drops are very random and very infrequent (i have a character level 21 and the only things that drop are the xth variation of standard weapons with some modifiers, no legendary or even exotic gear)

I knew this would be the deal when they decided to stop letting Legendary engrams decode into inferior Rare and Uncommon gear - less chance of actually getting a Legendary engram to start with, and also probably more chance of the ones you do get being decoded into a piece of gear for a different class.

Raids can only be done by established groups out of your friends list. I understand the reasoning that they are ultrahard and need a well coordinated team but automatically taking away even the possibility for relatively strangers to attempt a raid is the wrong way. There is no chat system and matchmaking for raids.
It may be a bad idea to attempt a raid with strangers but the possibility should be offered including a voice chat option.

To be fair, Bungie have said their looking at changing this in an upcoming patch, so probably won't be an issue for much longer.

 

[martok2112]

A lot of times, if someone gets a piece of Exotic gear in Crucible, it will appear as a message in the play by play text in the lower left of the screen. When I got my MDA Multi-Tool scout rifle, that's how I saw it.... martok2112 has discovered MDA-Multitool (the weapon name being in yellow text). I didn't even see it flash as an icon in the usual spot (mid right to upper right of screen) until I was back in orbit waiting for the next match. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have even been aware that I'd acquired an Exotic weapon until just casually looking through my inventory.

Thus far, I have two Exotic helmets (one acquired through Crucible, another purchased from Xur), and two Exotic primary weapons (same situation). All my armor is Legendary except for my cloak (which I don't use since cloaks seem to serve no purpose in the game).


I do agree with Servo that even though they may have patched up the acquisition standard for "if you get a Legendary engram, you get a Legendary (or better) object", but they seem to have further rarified the instances in which you actually do get a Legendary engram. And if you receive a Legendary level package in the mail at The Tower, it still usually ends up being multiple Rare items, not Legendary or better.

They also seem to have further rarified the frquency in which one acquires Ascendant Shards and other special materials or currencies needed to upgrade Legendary or Exotic weapons. This can be a bit frustrating, as I have two upgrades available for my Exotic helmet, but can't unlock them because the game won't give up the items I need to make it happen.

 

[Servo]

They also seem to have further rarified the frquency in which one acquires Ascendant Shards and other special materials or currencies needed to upgrade Legendary or Exotic weapons. This can be a bit frustrating, as I have two upgrades available for my Exotic helmet, but can't unlock them because the game won't give up the items I need to make it happen.

This is one of the most frustrating parts of the game, for me. Even more so than the Engram drop rate. I think I've only ever received Ascendant Shards and Energys as rewards from a daily Public Event, or from gaining another rank with the Vanguard or Cryptarch. They're impossible to farm, which is obviously intended, but that just makes it more annoying when you have 3 upgrade slots ready to go on your piece of gear that you can't do anything with.

The only other thing that really bugs me about the game is the Exotic Weapon bounties. I know they're mean't to be hard to obtain, but I feel like the game is basically telling me that if I'm not hot shit in the Crucible, I'm never seeing these weapons. I have one that is telling me I need to get a 25 K/D spread to progress to the next stage. I honestly can't see me getting it, and am sadly considering abandoning the bounty.

Honestly, I haven't played much Crucible, mainly because when I did, I got my backside handed to me. The worst part is I can't even figure out why. I'm a seasoned FPS player, in both campaigns and MP, but here I felt like a noob in a game other people had been playing for decades. Nothing I did seemed to work, and I don't think I ever finished a game with a plus K/D.

Funny, I have solo'd a Weekly Heroic Strike and beat everything the game has to offer a solo player, yet for some reason I can't get a break in the Crucible.

 

[Sephiroth]

^from what I can see the crucible is only for the people who play 8+ hours a day because while they even off armor and weapon damage, they don't restrict unlocked class abilities and weapon stats/mods, so, those with jacked up legendary/exotic weapons and fully unlocked classes have huge advantages

 

[SPCTRE]

https://twitter.com/Mr__Swede/status/520003739365961731