Bungie reveals that the new light level cap for Destiny: Rise of Iron will start at 385 and will jump to 400 with the launch of the hard mode version of the raid.

With the launch of a new Destiny expansion, like September’s Rise of Iron, comes a certain set of expectations. Players want a new raid, they want new gear, and they want new activities to complete. But behind all that is usually a revamped progression system, which in Rise of Iron’s case has been slightly tweaked since the April update.

According to Game Informer’s hands-on time with the game, the progression system in Destiny: Rise of Iron will look very familiar to regular players. Based on the publication's casual glance it appears that the progression system added with the April Update, which takes into account a player’s light level and drops items within a 5-level gap, will return. Bungie said as much when teasing Rise of Iron, but now it is official.

As far as that light level is concerned, the launch of Rise of Iron will raise the cap from 335 to 385. That 50-point gap should give players enough incentive to explore all that Destiny: Rise of Iron has to offer and probably leave a little wiggle room for grinding that last 5 to 10 points of light.

And yes, the 385 light level is just a soft cap for the launch of Destiny’s new expansion. When the hard mode version of the new Rise of Iron raid launches, the cap will increase to light level 400, but that won’t be until a few weeks after launch.

So while leveling won’t look that much different in Rise of Iron, the quest progression system will. Using a new Rise of Iron Record Book, players will be able to keep track of their various accomplishments and, in turn, earn new pieces of gear and weapons. Basically, think of the Record Book like the various other books featured in Destiny thus far, most notably the Sparrow Racing League and Moments of Triumph Record Books.

All told, Destiny: Rise of Iron’s progression system will have a familiar look, albeit with the some slight tweaks. The new level cap of 385 (and eventually 400) is sure to keep players chasing a goal, but hopefully the implementation of the Record Book will add a little focus to that.

Truthfully, after the release of Destiny’s April Update it appeared that Bungie had honed in on a progression system that didn’t need any major changes. Each new drop was usually higher in light, and there were plenty of opportunities to earn better gear. So if Bungie can build upon that then there should be no problem getting prepped for the new raid on Friday, September 23rd.

Destiny: Rise of Iron releases September 20, 2016 for PS4 and Xbox One.

Source: Game Informer