Destiny 2 Lightfall’s difficulty increase is a good thing – actually, and I’m tired of pretending it’s not. In the flurry of blogs we got in the lead-up to Ligthfall, the one thing that set the community on edge was the general balance changes being made to the game.
To make a long story short, everything in Destiny 2 is getting harder with Lightfall. That’s a good thing, though. Let me tell you why.
Lightfall’s Difficulty Increase is Necessary
The Power-Creep Problem
If Destiny 2 is released today, the new adjusted Lightfall difficulty would be standard across the board. It simply isn’t the same game it was when Destiny 2 was first released in 2017. The increase in difficulty is more of a reset as opposed to an actual difficulty increase.
You can’t sit there with a straight face and tell me that Strikes were still a balanced playlist pre-Lightfall. Even the most casual of players could run through them blindfolded with one hand. Bosses’ typically died instantly, and you could easily get one done in under 10 minutes, even if you were solo.
That’s not symptomatic of Strikes being a casual activity – it’s symptomatic of a balance and power-creep issue.
3.0 subclasses and the expansion of the mod system has increased our potential damage output by ridiculous numbers. I’m not just talking about boss DPS, either. Our general lethality and ability to clear rooms have sky rocketed since the Void rework, and the rest of the game has not kept up with that. There has been no significant “enemies 3.0” update – meaning we’ve gotten disproportionally stronger over time compared to what we’re actually fighting.
These new difficulty increases don’t just make the game harder – they make it more balanced. As far as I’m concerned, that along is justification for it.
On the Topic of Rewards
Perhaps the biggest pushback against the Lightfall difficulty increases was the notion that we weren’t getting any additional rewards for our extra troubles.
Personally, I don’t think we should get any rewards. As I said, this is a re-balancing of the scales, not an actual difficulty increase as far as I’m concerned. Despite how I feel, though, we actually are getting more rewards in the form of expanded weapon crafting and focusing.
Bungie is overhauling the core playlist vendors to allow you to focus their relative weapons. This, by extension, means you’ll be able to craft them. There are some S-tier weapons available this way, Prolonged Engagement and Cold Front being the obvious two.
If you mean to tell me that isn’t a better reward than some materials and random drops, then you need to put down the controller and go for a cold swim.
Related: Is Lightfall the Last DLC for Destiny 2?
Heist Battlegrounds
Lastly, I want to briefly touch on Heist Battlegrounds from Season 19. These were Bungie’s first experiment with cranking the difficulty up for playlist activities, and it was a resounding success. Lest we forget, the new difficulty of those Battlegrounds was a highlight not just of Season 19, but the entirety of the Witch Queen year.
Generally, as a community – we loved that stuff. So, why is it an issue now? Strikes aren’t even being tuned that hard, so it’s not like they’ll be inaccessible (I recognize Heist Battlegrounds were a bit too tough for new Guardians).
There is an argument to be made against the changes to the likes of Dares of Eternity – which I would consider already well-balanced considering its purpose. That’s one activity out of several, though.
Maybe you disagree with everything I have to say. Well, that’s okay. Destiny’s PvE isn’t for everyone – but that’s my two cents on the matter.
Whether you like it or not – Lightfall is more difficult than other Destiny expansions. You’re going to need all the help you can get, so follow Gamer Journalist on Facebook. We’ll guide you through all the new content.
