Since a few years, there have been rumblings about a Destiny 2 mobile games. The rumours have intensified in the last few months since Bungie laid off 220 of its developers amid speculation as to what was happening. Netease has now confirmed that those rumours were true. Destiny: Rising is a mobile game which will act as an alt-history prequel for the current Destiny.
Destiny: Rising, a free-to-play mobile shooting game, is set in an "alternate Destiny timeline" after the Collapse. It is said to have a mix of singleplayer and multiplayer modes including some familiar to Destiny players.
Look, the default reaction here is scepticism, right? Bungie's recent woes, including the mass layoffs that occurred earlier this year, appear to be a result of a studio which had overstretched itself. The Destiny mobile version is not what the playerbase wants. Any time spent developing it will feel like a waste to a community that desperately seeks stability from the series developer. Bungie is only tangentially involved.
The press release for Destiny Rising goes to great lengths, perhaps because of the reasons listed above, to make it clear that this is a Netease product. It reads: "Developed and Published by NetEase Games and officially licensed Bungie," putting the Bellevue studio out of reach. The trailer echoes this sentiment. Rising seems to be a separate series from the base series, even though it is billed as "an alternate Destiny timeline". Lore contradictions? Character inconsistencies? Alternate timeline, innit.
It's a good thing, too, because the trailer doesn't scream post-Collapse Earth to me.
It's vibrant and modern. It looks like an updated version of today's game, not a look at a time period where we're told there were bloodthirsty warriors and desperate bands of humans looking for refuge. There's a good reason why Destiny hasn't tackled this part of the game's past. It's darker, more muted and harder to sell.
Netease has provided some details on how the game will work. Players can customise Wolf, but also play as other characters like Ikora. The activities include Haven Ops strike mission, which is no doubt similar to Vanguard Ops in the main game, as well as Gauntlet Ops - described on the official website as "raid like".
According to everything that has been announced, I don't think it will affect me as a player of Destiny 2. The announcement highlights Bungie's minimal involvement in this project, which is likely a good thing, given the turmoil within the studio and the work that's currently being done for next year's extensions. The setting is a far cry from what we imagine as Destiny 2 post-Collapse, so I doubt that there will be any impact on the story and lore of the main game. It's just not for me. If it doesn't affect Destiny 2 in any way, then it's fine.
If you want to play the Destiny: Rising Alpha, but on your phone, then you can pre-register.
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