Destiny 2 bringing back Trials has created a renewed focus on PvP. With Crucible being the lone form of PvP in Destiny 2, the competitive factor in the game inarguably suffered. Trials will raise the bar again, and raise player expectations. With that in mind, Bungie has reportedly made a meaningful change to PC matchmaking that will improve the competitive integrity of Destiny 2 PvP.
Redditor RoyAwesome provided an update regarding Destiny 2's new networking changes on Tuesday, revealing a change that they'd discovered had been left out of Destiny 2's recent patch notes. Apparently, Bungie has made a surprisingly big change that masks users IP addresses when matchmaking in Destiny 2, so PC Destiny 2 players on Steam will be much better protected from potential DDOS attacks.
Specifically, RoyAwesome says that Bungie has shifted Destiny 2 from employing "Windows Sockets" which are entirely IP-based to using "Steam Network Sockets." As RoyAwesome describes it, "Peers (other players, servers, etc) are no longer addressed by IP Address, but instead a Steam ID." This means that potential DDOSers don't have quick and easy access to other players' IP addresses.
As of this update, PC client appears to be using Steam Network Sockets, which means your IP is now hidden from other players and you cannot be DDoSed. from DestinyTheGame
Untrustworthy players are able to take other players' IP addresses and do what's called a Distributed Denial of Service attack on them. This basically overwhelms a user's client with useless data, causing perceived lag to varying degrees or even disconnects.
Destiny 2 only has an issue in this regard because it uses peer-to-peer connections for multiplayer. That's one of the reasons dedicated servers are preferred for multiplayer games. They don't send each player's IP address to every other player. Steam's networking solution adds a layer of protection to peer-to-peer usually reserved for dedicated servers.
Bungie is unlikely to resurrect Destiny 2's competitive scene, regardless of what improvements it makes. However, providing basic improvements and support is really the least that players can ask for. It also benefits Bungie to make improvements now, with the hope that a competitive scene will be ready to start strong for any Destiny sequel that may be in the works. Regardless, any improvements should be taken as positive.
Destiny 2 is available now on PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.