Long before Bungie's Destiny 2 released to the eager masses in early September, fans had been wondering about which elements of the original first-person shooter title would remain the same in the sequel. As time went by, the studio clarified that things like character personalization and certain weapons (such as the Mida Multi-Tool) would transfer over to Destiny 2, leaving players  of new additions rolling out down the line. One individual claimed to have identified such an upcoming addition when they discovered files in the Destiny 2 database that pertained to Prison of Elders. Now, Bungie has stepped forward to squash that rumor, definitively stating that Destiny 2 is not bringing back the in-game mode.

Within the original Destiny, Prison of Elders is a Horde-like, three-player co-op arena mode that was included in the game's House of Wolves DLC. The mode places heavy emphasis on skill and round-based combat, but was criticized for its below-standard loot quality, battle format, and difficulty of boss fights, particularly Skolas. Bungie made significant improvements on Prison of Elders, transforming it into a relatively enjoyable mode. But would it actually be coming to Destiny 2, especially with the existing concerns about its underwhelming conclusion?

According to Bungie community manager Cozmo, no. Cozmo stated in a comment on the Destiny 2 sub-Reddit that Bungie has "no current plans to bring PoE to D2," before addressing what was found in the game's database that sparked the rumor in the first place. Within the DestinyActivityTypeDefinition section of the database, files included a "Destiny 2 PoE Icon Placeholder" and the mention of a Prison of Elders icon display. Cozmo explained that "this is just some leftover bits... just dust and echoes"

Given that multiple things from Destiny were left behind when the creatives began crafting Destiny 2, it's understandable that Prison of Elders won't be making the leap. It would likely be difficult to introduce to the sequel title as well, since the activity was held in The Reef, a prison facility that is somewhat separate to the game's main locations. This news certainly doesn't mean that Bungie won't add other Destiny content to Destiny 2 in the future, or create a new co-op mode in an upcoming DLC. For now, it will be interesting to hear how players feel about Prison of Elders being left out.

Destiny 2 is available now for PS4 and Xbox One, and releases on October 24, 2017 for PC.

Source: Reddit