Look, at this point, asking if Bungie’s next big shake-up is going to work is like wondering whether your microwave dinner will look anything like the picture on the box. You know the answer. But because we’ve all been Stockholm-syndromed into caring, let’s break down why the so-called “Frontiers” era — starting with Edge of Fate — feels less like a bold new beginning and more like rearranging deck chairs on the HMS Eververse.
Instead of a proper sequel, Bungie is hoping to lure new and returning players through “resets” and “restructures.” Translation: they’re slapping a fresh coat of shader paint on familiar menu and inventory systems and hoping you won’t notice how thin the content is until you’ve already paid $100 for another “deluxe” edition. A true Bungie classic.
So, what’s the big narrative hook this time? The Nine. Yes, the same Nine who’ve mostly been used to gatekeep PvP tokens and give cryptic monologues between sparkly horse games.
The premise is mildly interesting: different goals, different personalities, all packaged into tiny expansions that will no doubt leave you feeling empty and fulfilled in order to manipulate you into buying the next expansion that follows. Rinse. Repeat. It is the Bungie way, after all. But is this enough to keep diehards engaged? And, more importantly, is this going to be enough to draw in new players? Not likely. As for casuals, well, most of their clan mates have left and moved on to other games that aren’t so tedious and disrespectful of players’ time commitments.
The centerpiece of this “bold new structure” is something called The Portal, which will supposedly streamline the experience by dividing activities into different categories that emphasize solo or team-play. Neat idea. Too bad it’s just a glorified filter over content from the past six years.
Bungie continues its long-standing tradition of making everything more complicated than it needs to be, even more so now with the new gear system. Bungie says this new system is more approachable, but let’s be honest: you’ll still need to consult a spreadsheet, a YouTube guide, and three Reddit threads just to understand which perks aren’t garbage. Bungie refuses to embrace simplicity — it’s like they think if you’re not confused, you’re not engaged. Welcome to Destiny Menu Simulator 2025 Edition.
This is classic Bungie: instead of fixing what’s broken, they just reshuffle the deck and act like it’s a whole new game. And no, your carefully curated Vault still won’t have room for all your builds — but hey, maybe they’ll let you buy five more slots for $20. Progress!
In case you were hoping this brave new frontier would come packed with more stuff to do: lol. Frontiers is bringing less content overall — smaller campaigns, less frequent seasonal updates (every six months now), and reduced incentives to log in week-to-week. And yet, they’re still asking you to fork over $100+.
At this point, Bungie is basically charging you a yearly subscription fee up front while Destiny 2 continues to reuse old assets, activities, locations, and content with each “new drop” (seriously, almost all their expansions feel like 60% or more re-used content and less than 40% new stuff). Oh, but you will get a ton of new cosmetics in the EverVerse cash shop.
The power grind might be less annoying this time around, but that doesn’t make up for the fact that this entire expansion feels like a minimal-effort repackaging designed to look accessible while still being dense enough to drive new players away in confusion.
This new era isn’t really for new players — it’s way too convoluted. And it’s not really for veterans either, unless you’re still clinging to the hope that maybe the next expansion will respect your time. Spoiler: it won’t.
The end result? A new saga that already feels old, a content model that’s grown stingier, and a studio still convinced it knows better than its community — despite a decade’s worth of evidence to the contrary.
But hey, at least that sparkly horse might come back.
