In the latest This Week At Bungie community update, Bungie's talking about future plans for Destiny 2 weapon rebalancing. These plans are stated to be in the works for Season 10 of Destiny 2, or as Bungie calls it Season of [Redacted]. Based on what Bungie says, Swords specifically are going to receive an "overhaul in functionality." Other weapons, however, are going to be looked at with a more deliberate touch.
Having previously detailed its planned changes for Swords weeks ago, Bungie instead focused on other weapon types. Sniper Rifles, Grenade Launchers, Shotguns, Fusion Rifles, and Auto Rifles are all archetypes that have planned changes. Each of the changes made to an archetype are notably different. While Bungie doesn't get specific with its plans, these are the areas of focus for each different archetype.
Sniper Rifles - Removing PvE damage buff against Major enemies and above implemented with Shadowkeep. Adaptive and Rapid-Fire Sniper Rifles will be nerfed.
Grenade Launchers - Damage lowered against Major enemies and above. Aggressive Frame Grenade Launchers are becoming Rapid-Frame Launchers and are being adjusted to account for the changes.
Shotguns - Bugfixed an issue for Shotguns with spread shots that targeted less-damaging areas. Nerfed certain small range dynamics to allow opponents to a chance to react.
Fusion Rifles - Bugfixed an issue for Fusion Rifles' target acquisition prioritization. Small notable nerfs to damage falloff, effective range, and the optics stat.
Auto Rifles - Buffs to precision that should improve usefulness in the Crucible a small degree, but PvE too, to a lesser degree.
Beyond weapon archetypes, Bungie also looks at several specific Exotic weapons in Destiny 2 in need of some rebalancing. Izanagi's Burden, Lord of Wolves, and especially The Last Word have all been nerfed. Bungie explains that these weapons have all become too strong and thus too commonplace in the current meta. The Last Word is changing dramatically with the intent of making it a hip-fire focused weapon.
Bungie's fearlessness when it comes to making meaningful balance changes to Destiny 2 between seasons is certain to be appreciated by players. When Bungie said it planned to be braver with its decisions now that it was independently publishing Destiny, these are the smaller but equally important decisions it was referring to. Nerfing three popular Exotic weapons, as well as several very popular weapon archetypes, will make some players frustrated. It's undoubtedly better for the game, though.
Destiny 2 is available now on Google Stadia, PC, PS4, and Xbox One.