This fall, Destiny 2 is getting yet another major expansion called Shadowkeep to kick off the game’s third year. But what will year three look like beyond Shadowkeep? Does Bungie plan on implementing more Annual Pass-style seasons? During a recent interview with Kotaku, Bungie staff discussed how they’re approaching year three and beyond.
Destiny 2 Beyond Shadowkeep Plans
Bungie’s creative leads Luke Smith and Mark Noseworthy recently sat down with Kotaku’s Jason Schreier for the Kotaku Splitscreen podcast. During the audio interview, Smith and Noseworthy talked about how they’re taking a learn-as-you-go approach when it comes to new content. Since Destiny 2 is a live service game, the development team is essentially receiving feedback in real-time. That, in turn, means that the studio is constantly learning what does and doesn’t work for its playerbase:
“It’s hard for us right now to predict what we’re going to do in 2020, because we’re changing a bunch of stuff in 2019, and part of being a live service game is: put something out, test it, learn from it,” said Smith. “Our expand-alone model and a la carte model for seasons is different, and if those things go well and players like them, we get an opportunity to keep doing it.”
Part of the Plan
Noseworthy even mentioned how there are times when Bungie lines up several potential “paths” to go down based on where player feedback leads the team. Destiny 2’s direction obviously isn’t based entirely on player feedback, but Noseworthy and Smith recognize how important it is. However, they also recognize that having a solid game plan is equally important for the actual developers:
“That’s one of the hardest parts of running a live game service like this is just not having that perfect crystal ball, and the team wants it. The more certainty and track we can lay down in front of them, the better the experiences they’re going to build… We have a plan and we think it’s pretty good and we’re going to find out from our players if it’s really good or if we need a new plan.”
Destiny 2’s Shadowkeep expansion is scheduled to launch on September 17.