A video titled “Destiny 2 has become a Microtransaction Hell” from Youtuber Aztecross has the community talking about the state of Destiny 2 — garnering over a million views in just a few days.
It begins with an old clip of content creator Datto, shortly after the launch of Destiny: The Taken King, talking about Bungie implementing microtransactions in the game. He was wary that microtransactions might go beyond cosmetics, but now, post-Destiny 2: Lightfall, Aztecross believes Bungie has crossed that line.
This half-hour video ends with him saying that Bungie is stepping into the pay-to-win territory. Acquiring materials before others with season pass boosts, campaign skips for secondary characters, and early access to Exotic weapons from pre-orders are advantageous, according to Aztecross. Players can pay for instant gratification, which results in them getting cosmetics and materials before others, but pay-to-win is a controversial claim.
He talks about all the different, slimy ways Bungie gets players to bring out their credit cards, and issues with overpriced Eververse items and Silver bundles. However, I found some of his other talking points intriguing.
Aztecross mentions how almost all new Ghosts, Sparrows, and ships go directly to the Eververse store, and that bothers me the most about microtransactions. Many new cosmetics are up for purchase, but I’d prefer to get some of these as activity rewards.
He adds that free special events, like the Dawning, lock unique cosmetics behind Silver instead of letting players earn them through event triumphs. Bungie markets Eververse-exclusive cosmetics alongside events and new activities, which is rightfully questionable for a game that revolves around earning loot. I’m still upset that it took me several runs through the Prophecy dungeon to realize that a Sparrow from the dungeon trailer isn’t a reward and is actually from Eververse.
Consistent price increases for new seasons and yearly expansions, and making dungeons available for an additional cost are concerning too. Paying to play isn’t getting any easier on our wallets, either.
Although conversations around play-to-win and microtransactions aren’t new, how do you feel about the current state of Destiny 2?
