Destiny is a polarizing franchise for a lot of gamers, but given the game's massive popularity, every decision Bungie makes about their futuristic RPG shooter is sure to get a debate going, and the series' omnipresent sidekicks are no exception. Just last week, Bungie announced Peter Dinklage's departure from the series as robotic companion Ghost, alongside the news that Nolan North would be taking over, a move that has been as divisive as it was unexpected.

In Destiny: The Taken King, the iconic ghosts and descendants of the Traveler will once again reprise their role at every Guardian's side. This time, however, they're doing it with style.

As part of Game Informer's ongoing coverage of Destiny: The Taken King, the publication revealed that ghost shells will be functional as well as fashionable. Besides helping appearance-conscious Guardians separate themselves from the pack, the new ghost shells will also do things like boost a player's light level, with some of them also impacting a character's intellect, discipline, or strength values. The ghost shells will also appeal to players who are less concerned with pure number-crunching, offering perks like the ability to sense nearby spinmetal or offer bonus glimmer for killing specific enemy factions.

The decision to make ghost shells a blend of functionality and aesthetics reflects part of Bungie's new philosophy with Destiny: The Taken King. Alongside the gameplay improvements and various new features, like the Dreadnaught and new weapon designs, Bungie is attempting to make Destiny more social than it was at release. For example, players in Destiny: The Taken King will have a great deal more control over how they express themselves. They will also be able to declare allegiance to a specific faction to farm reputation with them, rather than having to wear specific equipment.

Even though Bungie has been hesitant to compare Destiny with traditional MMO games, they clearly aren't against including features that first became popular within the genre. They've already announced that Destiny: The Taken King will do away with the light-based leveling system and move towards something more traditional, and the bigger focus on storyline-specific raids and strikes are reminiscent of World of Warcraft's penchant for mixing large-scale narrative events with end-game boss content. It's decisions like these that make it appear the team at Bungie is committed to making good on the promise that Destiny's Guardians will last ten years.

Do you think making ghosts a bigger part of Destiny's gameplay is the right decision? Did you prefer the emotionless detachment of the Dinklebot? Let us know in the comments.

Destiny: The Taken King releases on September 15, 2015 for PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.

Source: Game Informer