Since the introduction of the Competitive Playlist in Destiny 2, Bungie has struggled with finding a way to make it enticing and rewarding. Early on, the Glory ranking system was set up to give players the illusion of a skill rating, but eventually the cracks began to show. Then, when Pinnacle weapons like Luna’s Howl were introduced, Competitive became even more frustrating for those players who struggled for one reason or another.

Things were made even worse when Recluse became one of the best PvE weapons, but only those who made it to Fabled rank in Competitive Crucible could claim it. Destiny 2 had created a barrier between PvE players and one of the best weapons for that type of content, and the obstacle was an inconsistent matchmaking system.

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In Destiny 2: Season 8, however, Bungie has removed a lot of those obstacles between players and claiming Recluse. It’s now easier than ever to reach Fabled rank in Competitive Crucible and almost anybody can do it.

The first important step in making it easier to get Recluse is the addition of the Freelance playlist. After swapping Competitive with a strictly 3v3 Survival game mode, Bungie also added a matchmaking playlist that does not allow for any pre-made fireteams. As a result, players don’t need to worry about getting matched against “4-stacks” when paired with random teammates. Now everyone is on their own and it’s up to the players to synergize.

recluse smg from destiny 2

The other key change for Competitive is a skill-based matchmaking system that functions in two ways. First, this new system tries to match the player with opponents and teammates of a similar skill level. Admittedly, this system didn’t work as intended for the first few days, but after a follow-up hot fix, Bungie was able to make things better.

Alongside the opponents that players face, the Glory rewards they receive per win are based on a skill rating as well. Essentially, Destiny 2 wants to get players to their “real rank” as fast as possible, and so Glory rewards from a win are much bigger than before. As well, Glory loss penalties can be almost negligible. Before, a win granted about 100 Glory depending on the rank and a loss took away 60-80 Glory. Now, a win can grant as much as 200 Glory without any win streak and a loss will only take away about 10 Glory.

At the very worst it will take players longer to get to Fabled rank in Destiny 2, but even if they only win 1 in 10 games, they will eventually get there. Recluse is well worth the effort too, because even after its nerf the Legendary SMG is still part of the best weapon loadout in Destiny 2.

Destiny 2: Shadowkeep is available now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

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