On the surface,Destiny 2seems like a standard looter-shooter game with an MMORPG flair. Players complete story missions, quests, and collect loot that increases their overall Power Level, in turn allowing them to take on tougher challenges. While it’s entirely possible to play throughDestiny 2without diving deeper into some of its more complicated gameplay mechanics, those who take the time to learn these tricks will have an overall more rewarding experience.
Unfortunately, some of the gameplay mechanics inDestiny 2aren’t explained all that well or are introduced in a way that it can still be confusing. With time, players will likely figure things out, but brand new players may be feeling overwhelmed. Not only will they have multiple story campaigns to complete inDestiny 2, but they also have a wealth of activities to complete across multiple planets and game modes.
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That’s where thenewDestiny 2Seasonal Challengescome in. TheDestiny 2Seasonal Challenges give Season Pass holders some extra objectives to complete each week, offering bonuses like XP boosts, Bright Dust, and other rewards. This is not unlike the challenges from other live service games, but the ones inDestiny 2appear to be released in a way to help guide players through the game’s content at a pace that makes sense.
For example, the first week ofDestiny 2’s Seasonal Challenges introduce players to theBattlegrounds activity, the War Table, and Cabal Gold.Destiny 2players are encouraged to play through the multiple Battlegrounds to complete the weekly challenges, which teaches them what these Battlegrounds are for and how they can maximize the rewards they get from doing them. Week 1 also encourages players to complete activities on Europa as well as generally participate in other playlists.
With each week ofDestiny 2Seasonal Challenges, the difficulty and time commitment ramps up. Jump to Week 5 and players are still battling it out in Battlegrounds activities, but they are also being asked to complete thePresage Exotic questmultiple times, masterwork armor, acquire the Salvager’s Salvo seasonal weapon, and earn five Infamy ranks in the Gambit. The latter will require players to grind through Gambit matches, which should in turn make them better at that particular activity.
And while theDestiny 2Seasonal Challenges start out asking players to complete general Strikes, the later weeks have players complete Nightfall: The Ordeal Strikes. For those who are unfamiliar withDestiny 2’s Strikes, Nightfall Strikes are like the “hard mode” version of the Strikes, with tougher enemies and stricter revive restrictions. Depending on the difficulty level, Nightfall Strikes also have Champion enemies that spawn as well.
Destiny 2’s Champion enemiesare a big focus of the Seasonal Challenges. Not only will players encounter them in Nightfall Strikes, but they are asked to stun, stagger, or pierce them, which will be helpful when completing Battlegrounds playlist matches as well. Doing this requires players to pay attention to the Bell of Conquests artifact and choose the correct mods that will allow them to stun Champions, in turn making them significantly easier to defeat.
CasualDestiny 2players may not usually put a ton of thought into their build, but the Seasonal Challenges will encourage them to find weapons that they like that in turn work with the mods that allow them to stun Champions. In turn, this makes for more competent players who have a better understanding of how this mechanic works, and will make them more viable across all ofDestiny 2’s different game modes. Another Seasonal Challenge will have players kill enemies while wearing a complete armor set, in turn encouraging players to find a build that works well for them and will make them more useful when completing team-based activities inDestiny 2.
That being said, there are a couple of Seasonal Challenges that someDestiny 2players may still find virtually impossible to complete. This includes completing a Nightfall Strike on Grandmaster difficulty, which was added to the Seasonal Challenges in Week 6. Before players can even participate in aDestiny 2Nightfall Strike on Grandmaster difficulty, they have to reach a minimum Power Level of 3125, which will take a lot of grinding. And considering a measly 3% of Xbox players have completed a Nightfall Strike on Grandmaster in the history ofDestiny 2, this is one challenge that many players will have to miss out on.
Luckily,Destiny 2players can still get the overall reward for Seasonal Challenges, a big pile ofBright Dust, without completing every single challenge every single week. While truly dedicatedDestiny 2players will be able to do so, it’s not a realistic goal for every player. Bungie has given fans some leeway, making it possible to skip out on two challenges and still earn the reward at the end of the season.
For most players, the two challenges they will have to skip will be completing a Nightfall Strike on Grandmaster difficulty and winning seven rounds in theTrials of Osiris. But even if they still aren’t able to tackleDestiny 2’s greatest challenges, following the Seasonal Challenges each week should still make for far more competent Guardians than they would be otherwise.
Destiny 2is out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
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