This week, Destiny 2 launched the final (announced) activity for Season 8 called Vex Offensive: Final Assault. For weeks, Ikora Rey has been building a portal in the Tower and most assumed that it would be tied to the Vex Offensive: Final Assault activity. They were right, but what Bungie delivered at the end of all that buildup was disappointing to say the least.
Vex Offensive: Final Assault is a new version of Vex Offensive that replaces the old version. However, the differences between vanilla Vex Offensive and Final Assault are slight and the game offers little incentive to complete the activity.
The lore behind Vex Offensive: Final Assault revolves around the Undying Mind, a Strike boss from Destiny 1. According to Ghost, tons of Undying Mind copies are hidden within the Black Garden’s code and it is up to Guardians to defeat them all. Now, at the end of Vex Offensive instead of a giant Vex Minotaur it is the Undying Mind that must be defeated. This giant Vex Hydra has the usual set of three rotating shields around it to prevent concentrated damage.
However, in order to actually do any damage to the Undying Mind, Destiny 2 players have to go through the same mechanics in vanilla Vex Offensive. Kill Minotaurs to collect Vex Craniums, use those craniums to wear down the boss’ immunity shield, and then do damage when the boss is vulnerable.
Story wise it’s a smart way to explain the need to continuously fight the same boss as part of a “final” assault, but the hope was that there would be something more. Everything else about the Vex Offensive: Final Assault activity is exactly the same as before. The Vex Offensive weapons are the same. The objectives are the same. Even the environment is the same.
What’s arguably most disappointing about the Undying Mind boss fight, in particular, is that it seems to have been copied from the Menagerie boss fight. When the exploding Supplicants kill players, the screen says Pagouri not the Undying Mind killed them. Pagouri was one of the rotating bosses in the Menagerie – a Vex Hydra that looks a lot like the Undying Mind in Vex Offensive.
There were a lot of different ways that Vex Offensive: Final Assault could have satisfied players. Completing the activity could have unlocked a new strike or a weapon quest. The activity could have been the only source to claim unique Season 8 loot or masterworked armor. Players might have even settled for letting the activity reward Pinnacle Power Level gear, if only to incentivize them to repeat the activity.
Instead, the only reason to do Vex Offensive: Final Assault is for the Undying title, which requires defeating the Undying Mind three times. Outside of that, though, Vex Offensive could revert back to its original form and players wouldn’t care. In fact, some might be happier since the Minotaur is easier to kill in one phase than the Undying Mind.
Perhaps the grand scheme behind Vex Offensive: Final Assault is yet to be written and there will be story hooks that build off of it. Right now, though, as the last piece of content that Destiny 2 players will experience in Season 8, Final Assault has left a bad impression.
Destiny 2 is available now for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.