In the home stretch of the current Season of Dawn, Destiny 2's PVP offerings continue to struggle with inconsistent design and mechanics. Even though the game has boasted an average player count of over 100,000 average players since Shadowkeep's launch, many player-interaction issues contribute to a pervasive feeling of frustration when playing competitive multiplayer.

It's one thing that the ability buffs to many of the sub-classes in Destiny 2 PVP are contributing to a lessening of the skill gap between players, but even at a base level, there are some fundamental issues with the mechanics in-game that have prompted many complaints from community members.

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Weapon Aim Assist/Hurtbox Size in Destiny 2

One of the main inconsistencies stems from hit detection on opponents, and that goes for both weapons and Guardian abilities. Players have noticed in general that hit detection varies greatly between different firearm types, most notably Hand Cannons. Recently, a video from Destiny 2 player "Calico" displayed evidence of the surprisingly generous aim assist for Hand Cannons in Crucible. It's why for a long time (and even today) Hand Cannons are all over PVP meta for Crucible and Iron Banner.

This same hurt-box inflation for precision damage also applies to Snipers as well. Destiny 2 substantially tones down the amount of special ammo available in Crucible (excluding ammo drop perks), but it's impossible to adversely affect that weapon type if it's still easy to land precision damage shots. Get a relatively good sniper and a proper sight line, and it's smooth sailing. Objective based game modes like Control and Iron Banner become much harder when sniper coverage is so optimal.

Realistically, downsizing the precision damage hurtbox on Guardians is the best solution to this problem. As long as Bungie can reach a happy medium between making the precision damage hurtbox too small and too big, it's a win-win. Highly skilled competitive players will be rewarded for having proficient accuracy without invalidating casual PVP play with a higher skill gap. And as a result, Crucible's nature becomes less about who's got the bigger gun.

Super Viability

destiny 2 buffing spectral blades super upcoming update

On the flip side, abilities also have hit detection issues that can be very hit or miss. Supers specifically get a lot of flak for this, even though in core Crucible matches, they're typically only used once a game. A prime example is offensive/roaming Supers like Hunters' Spectral Blades and Arc Staff, which have insane range, speed, and damage in comparison to roaming Supers like Nova Warp or Fists of Havoc. Warlocks' Nova Warp attacks are much slower, and although the blast covers a wide area-of-effect, it doesn't do as much damage unless the player is in very close proximity. Titans' Fists of Havoc are similar in that regard due to their lack of coverage vertically. These Supers are designed for crowd control in close range, but it's clear that the Hunter is far superior at accomplishing that task compared to Titans and Warlocks.

Their inherent design is not the issue. The problem is that not all Supers are created equal in Destiny 2 PVP when considering the fundamental differences between each class. Preference and match-ups dictate their viability greatly, so it's hard to argue one is better than the other. In this case, some well-placed balance changes to damage on some of the stronger/weaker sub-classes would be the right play to help manage parity between offensive Supers. Even more significant would be toning down some of the unique exotic armor perks that boost Supers (Ex. Raiden Flux, Skull of Dire Ahamkara, Doom Fang Pauldrons) in a variety of ways. Offensive Supers would still be very strong, just not overtly better or easier to acquire like they are now.

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Melee

Perhaps more problematic is the hit detection inconsistency in melee attacks in PVP. Functionally melee abilities act the same; a physical-based attack that triggers a lunge towards the opponent. Despite this, sometimes the hit detection can be very perplexing between the three classes. Many melee attacks connect at similar ranges, despite class archetypes seeming like they should not be designed equal.

Granted, nobody would argue that Warlock melee attacks should be stronger than Titan melee attacks. What should be argued is how melee abilities between Warlocks and Titans trigger lunge at similar distances. From a Warlock perspective, their melee attack is typically low-damage and ranged, requiring minimal precision at max distance to connect properly. What would be the point of Warlock melee attacks being ranged when Titan attacks trigger at the same spacing but are much stronger? There are some exceptions to the rule, like the new Dawnblade melee ability for Warlock (a mid-range projectile melee ability), which travels much further than a standard Warlock melee.

The point is parity between melee abilities shouldn't be the development focus when balancing Guardians in PVP. Each melee ability should have a distinct functional difference between character classes for not only variety's sake, but to add an element of counter-play as well. An interesting change (albeit a conceptually difficult one) would be to align each class's melee ability with their character archetype.

For example, a Hunter's knife could do average damage but be proficient at shield-piercing. A Titan's melee punch could do more damage to un-shielded opponents. A Warlock's melee attack could do average damage but have a longer effective range than a Titan or Warlock melee. These changes would be fantastic and create even more added variety in Destiny 2's PVP without invalidating the attack option entirely.

Contemporary Destiny 2 Crucible Map Design

Crucible map design should also fall under scrutiny as well for rarely taking advantage of a Guardian's movement abilities, specifically verticality. Many of the Crucible maps in rotation often have a lot of narrow, horizontal firing lines as if they were designed for a contemporary first person shooter. Problem is, Destiny 2 is comparatively very different to games like Call of Duty or shooters in general that are often grounded in realism.

Guardians in Destiny can fly, teleport, double-jump, and glide unrealistically high and over long distances, abilities that are really only highlighted in Destiny 2's PVE content (Strikes, Gambit, Raids, Quests). There are some good examples in Crucible maps with varied vertical environments like Wormhaven, Vostok and Bannerfall. That's only three out of over 10 maps currently in rotation for Crucible that don't properly take advantage of a definitive movement option in the game, and it can certainly affect how these abilities are used by players as well.

Warlocks for example struggle in the air due to being such an open and easy target, so there's no reason to take advantage of any aerial superiority when a grounded approach is much more viable on most maps. Multiplayer maps in other shooters often take advantage of verticality by utilizing buildings/structures, emphasizing greater spatial awareness of not only what's in front of the player, but what could be above or below them. Bungie could easily look to its past designing the Halo games for a goldmine of inspiration in multiplayer maps that utilize high and low terrain tactfully. Maps like High Ground or Guardian in Halo 3 exemplify a solid balance in terrain variety. In a game where vertical traversal is so mechanically prominent, it's strange how many Crucible maps don't take advantage of those abilities in Destiny 2.

Looking Ahead for Destiny 2's PVP

PVP in Destiny 2 has its fair share of problems in a lot of other prominent ways, but the fundamental inconsistency in design choices at its most basic levels should be the core concern for the future of the franchise. Some of the changes noted above can drastically change Crucible and other PVP activities in a very positive way, without alienating those on the fringes of competitive and casual play.

Proper hurtbox reduction for precision damage encourages skill without weakening average players, parity between Supers enables fairness in team composition, and different melee functionality further improves consistency by distinctly separating melee abilities into their own situational uses. More map variety has the potential to utilize Guardians' underappreciated vertical movement in PVP. Destiny has the potential to be a fantastic and unique shooter experience; it just needs to hone in on what the series does best mechanically and capitalize on that to make an impressive PVP experience.

Destiny 2 is out now for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.

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