PvP players are reassured by the Destiny 2 assistant director

August 5, 2021

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Season 16 will see the return of two maps, and there are new modes in the pipeline.

Destiny 2’s Witch Queen expansion will be revealed to the world on August 24, but ahead of that assistant game director Joe Blackburn shared some thoughts on the game’s PvP mode in a lengthy thread on Twitter. Blackburn stated that the team had put a lot of effort into “plussing the current Crucible experience” and promised that more changes would be made in the next season, including a revamp of Trials of Osiris.

While Blackburn does not directly address the general feeling in Destiny 2’s PvP community about the mode being neglected, it is clear from his detailed explanations and topics that he addresses which audience he is speaking to. Whether the promises made in the thread–some of which are fairly far off–will be enough to mollify players who haven’t received a new map in, by our reckoning, 674 days, is another matter.

“We’ve gotta keep our foot on the gas when it comes to revitalizing pvp pursuits and keeping gameplay metas fresh,” Blackburn tweeted. This isn’t something that we’ll ever be done with. We also know that we have plenty of room for improvement when it comes to the development of new modes and maps.

Bungie’s “ultimate objective” is consistency and a predictable flow of new maps, modes and modes. However, it’s more difficult than you might think. Blackburn warned that players may not see concrete results for a while. Developers are bringing back two vaulted map for season 16. However, this is not an easy task because of the Beyond Light engine upgrade. This means that all maps and modes must be “handported”. Season 17 will feature a new map, while season 18 will include a remastered map of the original Destiny.

Developers are looking to bring Rift, a ball-dunking game mode, from The Taken King expansion, Destiny 2 into Destiny 2. They’re also developing new modes that will be available in 2022. Blackburn also tweeted that “we want to examine what other general systemic improvements are needed for the PVP ecosystem.” “We want to offer something similar to the Trials rework each year to players.”

This is a remarkable turnaround from a year ago when Bungie took nearly a dozen Crucible map (among others) out of the rotation to make Destiny 2 “lighter and more streamlined.” Even though it isn’t exactly a master plan, Destiny Fun Police acknowledged Blackburn for being open to discussing the future.

They tweeted, “It’s great that we finally have some dialog on what’s coming to the crucible.” “That said, one map in S17 is a little too simple. We need at least three to four new maps to refresh our experience. This is a good start.

In his thread, Blackburn stated that his main goal was not to forge the future but to inform people that Bungie is still in business. “I wanted to make sure we shed some light to what’s going on behind the scenes here,” he tweeted. “Overall, we are still interested in increasing the amount of Destiny that we make each year.”

“It’s always risky talking about what’s in a pot as dates and details might change but it’s been awhile since we last talked pvp. We want players to know we’re working to create content for all guardians who enjoy spending time with Shaxx or the Redjacks.”

Destiny 2’s season 15 start date hasn’t been announced yet but the expectation is that it will get underway on August 24, when the current Season of the Splicer draws to a close.