Summary
While Bungie seemingly has no intentions of making aDestiny 3for the time being, even in the face ofDestiny 2concluding its 10-year Light and Dark saga with the upcoming The Final Shape expansion, a new title in the series is probably not off the table entirely. Ironically, even with no confirmed plans on Bungie’s part to develop a sequel,Destiny 3has been trending on and off on socials due to the issuesDestiny 2’s servers have been facing in the last few months, with players stating they’d want a new game on a new engine. Technical issues aside, aDestiny 3gamewouldn’t probably be exactly “Destiny 3” for a handful of reasons.
For starters,Destiny 2is arguably one of the most outstanding live-service success cases out there due to the fact that the game was dealing with incredible player retention and morale issues before Bungie started working on a seasonal model. Then, making a new game that’s a direct follow-up toDestiny 2as the company did with the original could be problematic both in terms of assets and item management, as players couldn’t possibly keep everything in their inventories and all their cosmetics too. However, the main reason why aDestiny 3game could work as a different beast lies in the series' lore and underlying themes.
RELATED:Destiny 2’s Cayde-6 Has Missed Out on a Lot of Major Events These Last 5 Years
Destiny 3 Doesn’t Need to be a Full-Blown Destiny 2 Sequel
Several missions, likeDestiny 2’s Presage, have very noticeable horror themes that are never at the front and center of the overall experience, even if they are there. It’s been said multiple times thatDestiny 2could easily go the horror route and make it its new home, and it would also make sense given the game’s stories and how Bungie tackles some of them in the actual gameplay loop.
The franchise also comes with plenty of possible characters and locations for a more horror-inspired game that’s stillDestiny 2-adjacent, but not quite the same thing. For example, aDestiny 3leaning into the series' horror themes could make players control regular soldiers or civilians in the same universe and how they deal with the many alien creatures that populate it. Going to the rumoredDestiny 2Old Chicago swampsin the shoes of someone that’s not a space-magic-wielding Guardian could be an incredible springboard for a new game that can still retain the original’s FPS style, just with a different approach.
There’s also the case to make aDestiny 3game that is more in line with the original vision Bungie had for the title, with some concept art pieces showing a world that was more fantasy than sci-fi both in terms of weapons and enemies. This could act as a sequel, a prequel, or just a video game set somewhere else in the universe, and all options would still make sense. For example,Destiny 2’s Zavalaand Drifter often mention the Dark Age, a time when humanity had just started being resurrected as Guardians following the Collapse.
The Drifter’s journey also could be a great source of inspiration for a future game in the franchise, as a dark chapter of his story takes place on a desolate frozen planet where he and his crew went up against creatures capable of blocking the Light’s powers. There are many lore bits and locations that could work for a different kind of experience, all while allowingDestiny 2’s The Final Shapeand future sagas to keep telling the story of the Guardians and the many characters that players grew to love.
Destiny 2is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
MORE:Destiny 2 May Have Shot Itself in the Foot With Its Season 22 Raid
