Destiny 2 has had quite the ride. The Final Shape, its new expansion, is the culmination of the entire storyline to date, tying together a decade of storytelling that started with the original’s launch in September 2014). The game has been at the forefront of live-service gaming, blazing a path for better or worse, and holding on better than some of its peers. There have been many glorious highs and disappointing lows along the way, like any long-running franchise.
The series has long held a special spot in my heart, ever since I picked up the original on a whim alongside my PS4 and dove in during the Dark Below era (RIP, Dinklage-Ghost). I may not follow every season, but I always look forward to these new installments of the story and check in for major events like my beloved Iron Banner events. Destiny has always been a satisfying FPS experience and ambitious in its attempts to tell an epic story, even as it occasionally stumbles to deliver that tale within a live-service model.
And so I went into The Final Shape with not only the usual anticipation, but the added weight of wondering if Bungie could bring a worthy end to their “Light and Darkness Saga.” I found, like a fireteam prevailing against a swarm of Hive, they have succeeded, mostly unscathed.
Where we left off in Lightfall, the unthinkable had happened: despite our heroes’ best efforts, the Traveler, the moon-like entity that grants players their Light power, had been breached by the Witness, an embodiment of Darkness hell-bent on reshaping the galaxy to its will. The seasons between Lightfall and The Final Shape saw the Coalition scrambling to find a way to pursue the big bad, and the new campaign picks up there, with the Vanguard making their desperate arrival in the Traveler’s Pale Heart.
“Many story beats are revisited and resolved throughout The Final Shape‘s campaign, trimming old loose threads.”
What follows is a solid campaign, meant to be played front-to-back without dipping out to the Tower or participating in other activities between main missions, in a break from series convention. Taking the expansions as isolated stories, The Final Shape has the potential to go down in history as Destiny‘s best standalone story to date. There are genuine stakes and a sense of comradery as we race through the Pale Heart alongside our closest allies in the Vanguard.
The highlight of The Final Shape is the return of Nathan Fillion as Cayde-6, the charismatic rogue and Hunter Vanguard. His loss in Forsaken was one of Destiny 2‘s biggest emotional blows, so as much as I appreciate the character, I was somewhat skeptical of the concept of him returning from the moment it was revealed. However, his inclusion is handled well and makes sense within the story’s parameters; now on the other side, I can see how it might have felt incomplete without him.
On the other side of the coin, with this expansion Keith David has stepped in to fill the shoes of Commander Zavala following the untimely death of his original voice actor and devoted Destiny 2 fan, Lance Reddick. Bungie does not shy away from using Zavala; indeed, they lean into him instead and make his internal crisis a core point of the story, and David seamlessly nails the role in the process. Both David and the narrative team at Bungie deserve praise of ensuring that the character Reddick loved so much got the treatment he deserves.
Cayde’s return is a fundamental part of the expansion’s overall theme of bringing things full circle. Many story beats are revisited and resolved throughout The Final Shape‘s campaign, trimming old loose threads or explaining why some of our closest allies have always been the way they are. Returning to former stomping grounds along the way, like the original Tower from Destiny 1, highlights just how far the series has come. After the main expansion story is over, many old friends and foes crawl out of the woodwork to help Guardians gear up for the final assault. In a lot of ways, this new era feels like a victory lap and high school reunion combined.
Granted, at points, I wondered if the callbacks were bordering upon cheap nostalgia instead of genuine plot development. Some instances of recycled environments were used for profound impact, while others struck me more as a quick “member-berries” moment—plucking an old heartstring and moving along quickly.
“…with the core story released and the Saga of Light and Darkness resolved, The Final Shape is undoubtedly a triumph, albeit one with some caveats.”
(I also wonder how this self-indulgence would register for those who joined during Destiny 2’s more recent years, those who skipped the original game entirely, and anyone who’s stumbling into this franchise for the first time now. But that’s a whole other kettle of fish.)
Another “full circle” aspect is The Final Shape’s new Prismatic subclasses, which essentially toss the elemental subclasses we’ve known for a decade out the window. Instead of picking one flavour for all of your Guardian’s abilities, the Prismatic classes let you mix and match. Want the Arc super, Solar grenade, and Stasis melee at your disposal at the same time? Once you’ve unlocked them by progressing through the campaign, you can make this dream loadout a reality.
Prismatic subclasses bear another new trick: Transcendence. This is a state not unlike one’s super, charging as Guardians use a mix of Light and Dark powers (or when they stand in certain fountains of light that automatically fill the gauge). Once activated, the ability allows the player to break enemies’ new barriers, and grants elevated regeneration and offense. It rounds out the Prismatic “greatest hits” subclasses by giving them something unique and desirable other than mixing elements.
I’ve played an Arc Warlock for the vast majority of Destiny 2‘s lifespan to date; it’s the quintessential mood of the game for me, melting foes with my electric melee and going full Force Lightning with my super. I’ve dabbled in other elements when required, then run back to Arc. The Final Shape, however, let me retain the best parts of my favourite subclass while swapping in some others. I remembered just how fun a Stasis Warlock’s super, Winter’s Wrath, can be, and splashed in a touch of Solar. This mix-and-matching offers a chance for players to make their ideal powerset.
But again, for another of The Final Shape‘s high points, I can also see a cynical caveat attached. Transcendence is fun, true, but it’s also yet another gauge for players to strategically fill, and another big ability to time properly. Likewise, the big new subclass is… all of the old subclasses combined, except you have to unlock all the abilities you already have?
Like the callbacks in the campaign mode, this strikes me as both a powerful dose of nostalgia and a bit of a cop-out. Prismatic classes are fun now when they’re relevant to the story, but I’m not sure how well they’ll age.
Now, of course, an expansion like The Final Shape is a bit complicated to review. There’s a core campaign storyline for it, but a live-service game’s expansion is much more than its launch content. It won’t be truly “complete” until the next expansion supplants it; years from now it’ll be just another landmark on the Destiny 2 road map.
As you can likely assume, that core campaign story builds to an epic showdown with The Witness. The stakes have never been higher for the Vanguard in that moment. And then, after that all-or-nothing moment… we’re called back to go gather our strength for a new multi-part questline and the new raid, Salvation’s End. After all that homework, The Final Shape then ends with the game’s first 12-player mission, “Excision.” It’s a truly epic and satisfying conclusion, though I can’t help but feel like Bungie robbed the wind from their own narrative sails by dropping in that busy-work.
From here on, Destiny 2‘s seasons will be replaced with Episodes, each a 3-part arc, with new arcs dropping every six weeks. The first three—named Echoes, Revenant, and Heresy—will make up the other half of The Final Shape as an “expansion.”
At this point, with the core story released and the Saga of Light and Darkness resolved, The Final Shape is undoubtedly a triumph, albeit one with some caveats. I love that it brought everything full circle and had us fighting alongside our oldest allies; yet, I also wish it had the courage to be a little more original and lean less on nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake. Love it or hate it, Lightfall was the most unique expansion to date, and The Final Shape follows it with literally more of the same thing that came before.
Then again, I have to admit, isn’t this exactly what Destiny has always been? A bit messy around the edges, sometimes copying its own homework, but still an exhilarating experience? At the end of the day, I was still thrilled and grinning during those epic showdowns, over-nostalgic or not?
Thanks for the last ten years, Bungie, and I’m looking forward to whatever comes next. Per audacia ad astra.
