When Bungie announced that it was separating from Activision and self-publishing the Destiny franchise, it was made clear that at least for now, Destiny 2 had a long and bright future ahead of it and the developer would not be rushing out another sequel due to contractual obligations. Destiny had a 3-year lifespan from Vanilla to its Rise of Iron expansion, and with Destiny 2 now in its third year, beginning with the Shadowkeep expansion, Bungie needs to start looking at how it can evolve some of its existing content rather than simply adding “more stuff.”
Destiny 2’s core pinnacle activities have all been around for a long time. Outside of story missions, endgame content like Raids, and seasonal activities like the Reckoning or Menagerie, the foundation is built on three core pillars: Vanguard Strikes, Crucible, and Gambit. Both Strikes and Crucible have been continually updated each season with sandbox changes and new modes like Momentum or Nightfall: The Ordeal but Gambit has received minimal updates since its inception. That begs the question: what's next for Destiny 2’s Gambit mode?
What is Gambit?
Destiny 2's Gambit mode was first introduced in the Forsaken expansion which launched in September 2018. From the get-go, Gambit was marketed as a brand new core activity that would sit alongside Strikes and Crucible, two staples in the franchise since its inception, that would combine elements of both PvE and PvP. Run by a new character known only as The Drifter, players must fight off waves of enemies and gather motes that need to be deposited into a central bank. Banking a total of 75 motes summons a powerful boss called a Primeval that needs to be defeated to complete the round. Two teams will be competing against each other with players being able to summon mini-bosses that prevent depositing and invade the opposing teams' game to pick them off.
Season of the Drifter, Destiny 2's sixth season, was primarily focused on the titular character and introduced a new mode called Gambit Prime with a few key differences from the regular mode. First, Gambit Prime is a one-round and players must deposit a total of 100 motes in order to summon the Primeval. Second, the Primeval has an immunity shield that needs to be taken down by defeating envoys around the map. And lastly, if multiple blockers have been summoned on either side, they will start to steal and transfer motes to the opposition.
Gambit Prime also introduced a new armor set that put a focus on what Bungie was calling the four roles of Gambit: Reaper, Collector, Sentry, and Invader. Earned in conjunction with the PvE mode the Reckoning, each Destiny 2 class received four new armor sets based on each of the roles that offer new perks based around that particular role. For example, the Collector armor gives players new perks that increase the mote cap from 15 to 20 motes, rewards ammo when banking motes, drop a portion of motes upon death, and granting an over shield when the player rapidly collects five motes.
The Future of Gambit
Gambit’s core gameplay is simple, easy to understand, and fun to play, which is why the mode has been so well received by the community - a natural fit for Destiny. Bungie has previously talked about Gambit only having one mode in the future by either removing one of the existing modes or some sort of evolution that takes elements from both. The issue with having both Gambit and Gambit Prime right now is that Bungie hasn't done a whole lot to make the modes feel distinct and unique because of how similar the gameplay is. One way to combat this issue is to keep both and take cues from how the Crucible is set up to distinguish them.
For example, Gambit Prime could be used as more of a “competitive” playlist for hardcore fans of the mode and keep the current 4v4 layout. Integrate Iron Banner's famous Power Level enabled balancing system and place a larger focus on defining player roles. Season of the Drifter introduced new gear and bounties for the then undefined roles, however, there's nothing in-game to stop players from simply doing whatever they want, whenever they want because the stakes aren't high in public matches.
On top of changes to Gambit Prime, the standard Gambit mode could also be updated with a focus on fun and more casual play. Explore the potential of an increased player-count like 5v5 or 6v6, start introducing limited-time events like the Mayhem mode from Crucible, and most importantly, add some new maps to the rotation. Making big changes to Gambit and Gambit Prime that really distinguish the two modes, offering new content and loot, and releasing limited-time events or modifiers that make players want to jump in and play is a strong first step into keeping Destiny 2's PvEvP mode relevant, outside of a complete reinvention.
Sandbox balance aside, Gambit felt like a perfect fit for Destiny 2 from the moment it was released and quickly became a staple activity for the franchise. Right now, there’s no significant problem with Gambit that needs to be addressed, however, minimal changes over the past year have made the mode start to feel a little stale. Gambit isn’t unplayable, just in need of a refresh to keep things interesting for the community and keep players coming back for more than the ritual weapons.
Bungie has already confirmed that Season of Dawn will be revealed in a live-stream scheduled for next Wednesday, December 4. Sweeping changes to game modes and the sandbox are usually saved for new content releases such as expansions or new seasons, so it’s likely that if Bungie has plans for a Gambit update in Destiny 2 Season 9, it will be revealed in next weeks live-stream.
Destiny 2: Shadowkeep is available now for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.