Hands on with Destiny 2 on PC @ E3 2017
—————————————
Spolier alert - If you don’t want to know anything about the Destiny 2 campaign, you should probably stop reading now.
…
…
After a 3 hour wait, I was finally able to get my hands on the PC version of Destiny 2 for a 10-15 min demo of what I assume is one of the first campaign missions. The gorgeous cutscene sees our favourite Vanguard; Cayde-6, Zavala and Ikora Rey defending the Tower and The Traveller from a massive Cabal invasion force.
Playing on PC was a bit of a shock at first, mainly due to the over sensitive mouse setup on these demo machines rather than the game itself. As soon as I stepped into the game, the slightest nudge sent me spinning and looking vertically up at the crumbling roof, unable to get my bearings. It took a minute or two to get used to the tiniest mouse adjustments before I was ready to go.
The mission begins in the ruins of the Tower Watch area, which is both spectacular and heart-breaking to see, considering this area has always served your sanctuary from the darkness in the previous game. Smouldering ruins aside, the area has never looked so good as I use the Postmaster’s cabin as cover to vanquish the Cabal ground troops.
Fighting through the brutes, I meet up with Zavala who is taking cover by the Hall of Guardians entrance. More invasion troops show up and send out a devastating blow to the surrounding area. Zavala throws up his Ward of Dawn for protection, encouraging me to stay close. I must admit that I was totally unprepared for it, fighting too far away to get back in time and ended up taking the full force of the explosion. Guardian down… “git gud noob”.
After fighting the endless Cabal forces in the Tower Watch and Tower North areas, with a little help from Ikora Rey, it soon becomes apparent that the only way we have a chance in hell against this army is to take the fight directly to them onboard their main attack ship. I begin forging a path to the drop ship rendezvous point through yet more Cabal forces, facing the first of many elite mini-bosses before being picked up by Amanda Holliday for another epic cutscene showing our daring infiltration on the main vessel.
The final part of the mission takes place deep inside Cabal territory. As I fight my way through the ship, more Cabal Legionary and Psion troops try to stop my progress, lead by the end of level boss who deals some devastating attacks. Even with my overpowered gear (for the purposes of the demo) I’m forced to retreat for cover a few times to avoid death as my shields are instantly destroyed by a flurry of his rockets, and my rifle shots do minimal damage against his superior defences. But he’s no match for me once I pop my super ability and I slice through his health bar with fiery projectile blades.
With the immediate Cabal forces vanquished, I make my way unhindered to my destination. Victory is in sight… but out of the Shadows comes the ominous and intimidating voice of Ghaul (AKA Gary), stepping into the light to reveal his imposing giant silhouette. “This is the end for you”… true to his word, the demo comes to a close with a dramatic fade to black.
Destiny 2 on PC is smooth and responsive, allowing me to hit headshots with pinpoint accuracy and spin 180 degrees with a flick of the mouse to counter enemy flankers (once I was accustomed to the hyper sensitivity). Colours pop and light reflects realistically off the surfaces, all in 60 frames per second. But these are super spec machines with top notch NVidia graphics cards to showcase the game at its best. Regardless of whether you are playing on PC, PS4 or Xbox One, Destiny 2 is shaping up to be quite epic indeed.
Destiny 2 is released on the 6th September on PS4 and Xbox One, and on the 24th October on PC. Pre-order it now from The Game Collection here.
- Nathan
