In the months leading up to the launch of Destiny 2's Shadowkeep expansion, Bungie talked about changing up the structure of of the online multiplayer FPS. Specifically, game director Luke Smith talked about leaning further into Destiny 2 being an "evolving world." In other words, having the Destiny 2 experience being an ever-changing game world where the story and content move forward month to month. With Shadowkeep's launched, many Destiny 2 fans are only just realizing how literal Bungie was being.
In one of the top posts on Destiny 2's subreddit, user friendlyelites says "Shadowkeep Doesn't Have a Real Campaign." They expound in the body of the post, saying "The campaign for Shadowkeep is NOT A CAMPAIGN. It is an introduction to the story that is going to develop over this next year. If the ending felt abrupt to you that's because IT IS SUPPOSED TO BE." But as empathetic as friendlyelites is, other posters in the thread, frustrated with Shadowkeep's launch, aren't quite so understanding.
The top post in the thread discusses how, while they're okay with the Shadowkeep campaign being an introduction, it's still frustrating due to how abrupt the currently available story is. User Spreckinzedick explains how the current story is "a bit jarring" and that, while they give the story so far a "9/10" rating they still have issues. Namely, that Destiny 2 does "jump cuts at pivotal story moments." The abrupt ending apparently left them with "trust issues" going into Shadowkeep's future.
User Jaseg777 offers further perspective on Shadowkeep's existing story. "Being an MMO doesn't mean that the story ... should feel disjointed," they start, before explaining how Shadowkeep's story struggles in its first chapter. Jaseg argues that while the story doesn't have to resolve itself, that it's okay to leave unanswered questions and set up the next chapter, it should also feel "fully formed on its own." Shadowkeep, they say, doesn't manage this.
Others in the thread are much terser in their response, some saying it feels unfinished, others saying that it's overall bad writing. Needless to say, it seems many Destiny 2 players have an issue with Shadowkeep's story.
The heart of the discussion really comes down to confusion over what Bungie is doing in Destiny 2, going forward. It's unclear whether story, and specifically campaign missions, are even a priority for the team anymore. If it is, then Bungie may want to explain how Shadowkeep's story will unfold over the coming months to put some of the backlash to rest. Bungie doesn't have to go into excruciating detail, but players do deserve to know what to expect. And right now players very clearly don't.
Destiny 2 is available now on PC, PS4, and Xbox One, with a Stadia version also in development.
Source: Reddit