In this review
The big picture
Reasons to look closer
Hunters, Titans and Warlocks establish three broad identities, then subclasses, weapons, armour and mods turn each into a much more particular arrangement. Shooting and abilities feed into the build, while new gear gives you reasons to reconsider how everything works together. The attraction is finding combinations that suit what you want to do. You may be a cosmic force capable of extraordinary destruction, but you can still spend a surprisingly serious amount of time deciding what trousers support that ambition.
That is valuable depth for players who like experimentation. Repeating an activity can serve a different purpose when you are trying equipment or pursuing something specific. It is also a substantial vocabulary to learn. Starting with one class and an achievable goal is kinder than trying to understand the entire solar system's wardrobe before your first proper outing. The universe has survived a great deal; it can wait while you work out one useful combination.
Cooperative encounters provide a reason to put those builds to work together. Dungeons accommodate fireteams of up to three, combining combat with more involved mechanics. Raids typically bring up to six into larger, complex encounters. These activities ask people to coordinate rather than simply stand near one another while shooting. The difference becomes obvious when five players understand what happens next and the sixth has found an interesting corner.
The potential reward is a shared challenge that your group learns to handle. The potential headache is a group whose expectations never matched. A patient learning run and an efficient clear are different evenings, even when both are reasonable things to want. Cross-play helps people gather across supported platforms. It cannot persuade the person who said “five minutes” to finish cooking dinner, so leave some room in the plan for ordinary human physics.
Intro
Destiny 2 gives you a gun, supernatural abilities and a universe large enough to misplace several of its own chapters. Bungie's online shooter has always had an appealing central proposition: assemble an elaborate space hero, find an equally elaborate problem and bring friends whose understanding of the plan ranges from excellent to “sorry, which symbol?” The difficult part can be figuring out where to begin.
There is an important change to that proposition in the supplied 2026 announcements. Monument of Triumph arrived on 9 June as the announced final planned live-service content update, while the game remains playable. Bungie subsequently announced work to restore vaulted campaigns, destinations and raids in September. That restoration has no announced release date in the cited plans. It is a project, not a completed delivery that somehow got left behind the Tower reception desk.
What the current playground contains
Monument of Triumph added a permanent new Pantheon, refreshed raid and dungeon rewards, and restored the Director's central role in navigating activities. That gives returning players concrete things to investigate within the existing game. It also points to a different rhythm: revisiting and mastering available adventures rather than assuming a dependable parade of future expansions.
Sparrow Racing League returned with the first game's four tracks and a new Quantum Circuit track, and Skimmers can race alongside Sparrows. After so much carefully coordinated violence, the opportunity to travel somewhere urgently without first organising a damage phase has a clear appeal. It is a different use for the same universe, and a useful detail to check if racing was what you missed.
The broader recommendation therefore depends on what is playable now. Existing activities may supply plenty of entertainment for a suitable group, but the end of planned live-service content updates changes the buying calculation. Choose the adventures you actually want to do. An imaginary expansion cannot provide an evening's entertainment, even if everyone in the group has already argued about its hypothetical loot.
Missing history is still missing
Bungie's September restoration announcement acknowledges the damage caused by removing earlier experiences. Bringing back vaulted campaigns, destinations and raids could make Destiny's story easier to follow and its history easier to revisit. For now, newcomers should expect gaps rather than a seamless route through every previous chapter, and returning players should check whether the specific content they remember is actually available.
That matters because “you would have loved this” is a fairly inadequate substitute for an accessible campaign. The restoration plans may eventually improve the situation, but the cited announcement does not establish when. Keep the future project separate from the present product and you avoid buying a reunion ticket for guests who have not confirmed they are coming.
Getting the right version of the universe
Destiny 2 began on consoles in September 2017 and on PC that October. Its 2019 Steam date is a storefront arrival, not the original PC launch; native PS5 and Xbox Series versions followed in December 2020. Windows, PS4, Xbox One, PS5 and Xbox Series are the supported native platforms, and internet access is required.
Free entry does not unlock every paid adventure. The Collection bundles paid content including expansions and Dungeon Keys, so compare its contents with what you already own before purchasing. Cloud access through GeForce NOW has separate account, device, regional and connection requirements. It does not make the game native to those extra devices. Local SteamOS/Proton play is unsupported, and Bungie warns against bypassing that restriction; streaming is a different route.
Destiny makes the strongest case to players who enjoy equipment experiments and can find compatible company for its demanding cooperative activities. Start with a manageable goal and see whether that combination works for you. Becoming a space wizard is the easy part. Agreeing on Thursday evening remains the final boss.
Sources
Information checked on 16 October 2026. Features, platform compatibility and editions can change.
- NVIDIA: current GeForce NOW catalogue ↗Current cloud catalogue; verified against all 6,161 entries in live US catalogue on 17 October 2026.
- NVIDIA: live GeForce NOW catalogue data ↗Destiny 2 is Ready-to-Play via Steam or Epic; no minimum Premium tier is specified.
- NVIDIA: supported devices and controls ↗Device, operating-system, broadband and controller requirements. Headset routes stream a flat 2D game, not native VR.
- Bungie: SteamOS/Proton restriction ↗Local Destiny 2 on Steam Deck requires Windows; SteamOS/Proton is unsupported and bypassing it risks a ban. Cloud streaming runs the game remotely.
- Epic: Destiny 2 ↗Windows release and 24 October 2017 original PC release date.
- Valve: Destiny 2 application metadata ↗Native Windows platform and partial controller support; cloud device controls remain necessary.
- Steam: Destiny 2 ↗Windows game, free entry, storefront release date and co-op/PvP modes.