Destiny is video game Crack. You can't play it just a little, and you can't quit it. Despite its narrative shortcomings, Bungie tapped into a wildly addictive formula that gets its claws into you and won't let go.
The Dark Below is Bungie's answer to Destiny fans who want more. As in, more of everything: more story missions, more patrol missions, more multiplayer maps, more Strikes, more loot, etc. And that's probably the best way to sum it up. There's nothing earth-shattering within its contents, it's just more of the same.
Which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Yeah, it'd be great to get a new world to explore, like Mercury or Jupiter, but The Dark Below does open up several brand new areas on Earth and the Moon that are every bit as smartly designed and thought out as the existing maps.
The expansion centers around a new character/vendor in the Tower named Eris Morn. Eris, as the game quickly informs you, is a Guardian like you who years ago was part of a six-member Raid team that attempted to take down a powerful warlord named Crota. But the mission went horribly wrong; the other five Guardians were slaughtered and Eris was maimed (her eyes leak a creepy black goo all the time). She's finally escaped after living in hiding within the Hive tunnels under the Moon's surface for years, and now she lives in the Tower, where she's ready to recruit newer cannon fodder Guardians to finish what she began. For all missions related to The Dark Below, Eris takes over for your Ghost (aka Peter Dinklage).
The three new story missions are enjoyable enough, mostly following through on plot points from the main game like the mentioned-but-never-seen Warmind computer named Rasputin. It culminates in a pseudo-finale that tasks you with stopping the Hive from conjuring up Crota's soul (they consider him a god, but he's just a very powerful member of the Hive race), which is how Bungie gave the stories a nice capper while reserving the real fight against Crota himself for the expansion pack's Raid.
| To Explore Or Not To Explore? With the most recent update, found Materials can no longer be traded with Vendors for Marks. As a player who's always enjoyed exploring Destiny's gargantuan maps, I'm sorely disappointed by this change. I've always been astounded at the endless nooks and crannies Bungie hid away in Destiny's worlds, but now there's no reason to bother looking for them. Vendors now sell Materials and charge you Marks for them; it's a complete 180 that some gamers may welcome, but this gamer finds it a huge turnoff. Losing that exploration aspect of the game means I'll be spending a lot less time playing. |
The first two story missions are surprisingly short and sport very small maps. The final mission is considerably larger, more like the missions from the main game. All three end with big boss battles that may require more than one attempt as you get used to what the new enemies can do. All three story missions took me about an hour and a half to get through — and I didn't rush. Hardcore gamers will have no problem blasting through the whole shebang in an hour or less.
If that was all you got for your $20, it would be mighty disappointing. Fortunately there's much, much more. The three new Crucible maps offer some fun variations on Destiny's existing play mechanics, though they don't bring anything revolutionary to the mix. There are big changes afoot for vendors, the biggest of which fundamentally alters the way Exotic weapons are upgraded.
It would seem that the number one thing players requested from Bungie was more story incorporated into their sessions, because the developer brought story elements more to the forefront in every aspect of The Dark Below. A new co-op Strike called "The Will of Crota" sends you after one of Crota's top lieutenants. (PlayStation owners also get a timed exclusive second Strike.) Again, both offer some great new maps and fun gameplay designed to appeal to Destiny's existing players.
The star attraction for many will be the new Raid, "Crota's End," which likewise has enhanced story elements, this time making it the defining mission of the entire DLC pack. Here is where you fight your way down through level after level of the moon's Hellmouth until you finally come face-to-horrifying-face with Crota himself. He's a heck of a monster, humongous and insanely hard to kill. But this is a Raid, after all, so you'd expect nothing less. Enter the Hellmouth only if you dare — and you have several uninterrupted hours to commit to it.
The Dark Below includes a new legendary Sparrow called the EV-30 Tumbler. It sports a splashy paint job with the kind of flames Optimus Prime would envy. It also enables you to do some nifty hotdog tricks while riding. Best of all, you don't have to do anything to earn it. Buy the DLC, and it's waiting for you at the Postmaster vendor. There are loads of new weapons and gear to acquire, and Eris offers Emblems and other specialty items you can buy. After you finish the story missions, Eris offers ongoing Bounties, now renamed Quests, that earn you rewards for completing missions with enhanced story elements. This structure raises the stakes for players, and it's a very welcome change.
The level cap is raised from 30 to 32 with this expansion, but it's an awfully small increase for a $20 expansion. Why not jump up to 40? That kind of cap would have added some extra value to the pack and renewed the energies of gamers tiring of the endless grind.
The Dark Below adds plenty of fun new stuff to Destiny, which will be music to the ears of faithful players in desperate need of new content. It won't do anything to entice noobs, but it does manage to address the incomprehensible nature of the main game's story. The Dark Below is much easier to follow, with stakes that feel more tangible. And Eris Morn is by far the most interesting NPC Destiny has ever had.
Gameplay:
★★★★★
Story:
★★★★
Graphics:
★★★★★
Sound:
★★★★★
Replayability:
★★★★½
Overall:
★★★★½
