Destiny has had a much tougher launch than anyone could have predicted. What was one of the most anticipated games of the new console generation ended up being one of the most divisive games in recent memory. Some swear by the gameplay and exploration, others curse the lack of a story and repetitive grind. In fact, one of the major complaints from players has been about the lack of content in Destiny; the game basically forces level grinding at several different points throughout its story, meaning that players are forced to play old content over and over.
There was no doubt that Destiny would eventually receive downloadable content at some point, it was really just a matter of waiting for Bungie to tell players what the DLC is. Or, in this case, it was just a matter of waiting for the inevitable leak that detailed the upcoming missions and expansions.
Late Sunday afternoon, a video surfaced revealing a number of upcoming missions. Through a glitch in the game's travel system, a number of previously inaccessible missions became visible. While there are some mid-level Strikes, many of these new missions are Level 20 or above. It's entirely possible that Bungie knew that Destiny's late-game grind would be a bit devoid of content, and began preparing new missions for players who had already made their way through the game's main story.
It's interesting to note that some of the missions are labeled as 'Expansion Required.' Again, it was only a matter of time before Bungie released paid content, but a few of the new missions are missing that label. In all likelihood, these missions in particular are probably part of another free update, much like the updates Bungie has already released.
For the 'Expansion Required' missions, it's still up in the air as to what exactly the expansion will be and what it will cost. Bungie has typically released its Halo expansions at $10 a piece, but depending on the breadth of content offered, it could be more expensive. Rumors suggest that each expansion will offer a series of missions, a Strike and a Raid, which is quite a bit of content, so a $15 price tag is certainly not out of the question.
Funnily enough, during the Destiny beta, it was discovered that two of these new locations were already in the game. The videos below detailed how to access these off-limit areas: surprisingly, the King's Watch area already had enemies placed throughout it, even during the beta.
Bungie has been quick to update Destiny with new content, the first being the 'Vault of Glass' Raid. The six-man dungeon run was intended to be nefariously difficult, though some players have managed to beat the Raid in under an hour, while some have already conquered the mission on Hard mode. Just recently, Bungie released the 'Queen's Wrath' mission set, which included a number of new missions and Bounties for players who had already hit the level cap of 20.
Bungie also announced major changes to its loot system. Many complained that the late-game grind was too random to be fun, and the fact that Legendary loot could be downgraded into inferior items was just adding insult to injury. Thankfully, after this week, that system is no more. Bungie is releasing a patch to ensure that loot is never downgraded, meaning that what you see is what you get. Never again will a Legendary engram yield a Rare item.
In terms of the upcoming expansion, Bungie has yet to release a statement. Considering that some of the content was likely on the disc at launch, it might not be too long before Destiny sees some much-needed new content.
