022
The Big 10
STORIES EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT
10
IAN DEAN
EDITORJESS KINGHORN
STAFF WRITEROSCAR TAYLOR-KENT
GAMES EDITORMILFORD COPPOCK
ART EDITORIs goingsolotherightthing
for Bungie and Destiny?
GOING INDEPENDENT
COULD BRING BUNGIE
EVEN CLOSER TO
DESTINY’S PLAYERS.It feels like the industry is
swinging in favour of
independent developers.
Going independent could
afford Bungie the creative
freedom it needs to turn
Destiny into the kind of
game it always promised
to be. That’s not to pour
scorn on Activision, which
clearly supported the dev,
but now Bungie can own
its decisions. With one
eye on the next gen, with
streaming and a direct
engagement with us
gamers likely to be
important, Bungie could
develop Destiny in tandem
with the wants of its
players. With the dev able
to listen and adapt quickly,
what Destiny ultimately
becomes may not be
decided by a publisher but
by us, the players. QIT’S GOING TO BE
BUSINESS AS USUAL
FOR BUNGIE.Destiny has been around
for a long time now, and
the very reason Bungie
signed up with Activision
in the first place is the
strong vision the dev had
for its series. It’s that
vision that means it will
mostly be business as
usual for Bungie’s
portfolio. The dev knows
how to make things work,
and improvements to
Destiny 2 since the big
Forsaken update only
prove that. The drip-feed
of new content has been
improving over recent
months, and Bungie’s
interaction with its
community has helped the
game grow stronger. The
timeline for updates is
already clear, and works,
so Bungie just needs to
keep doing what it is
clearly good at. QBEST OF LUCK
BUNGIE, BUT DON’T
BLAME EVERYTHING
ON ACTIVISION.After leaving Microsoft
for Activision, serial
monogamist Bungie has
benefited a lot from being
with large publishers.
There’s a lot to be
thankful for, but along the
way it’s undoubtedly been
harder for Bungie to
figure out just what it is
as a company, and what
Destiny means to the
studio. It’s good for the
dev to feel freer, but you
can’t lay the blame for
previous missteps at the
feet of Activision. Going it
alone means there will
need to be a lot of
introspection. The
company needs to take
care of itself, to think
about how to keep being
the best it can be, and
what independence
means to the firm. QI’D LOVE TO SEE
BUNGIE CREATE
SOMETHING NEW
AND INNOVATIVE
NOW ITS AN INDIE.While I’ve enjoyed Destiny
I’d love to see Bungie use
its new-found freedom as
an independent developer
and self-publisher to
create new IP and move
forwards. The talented
team has spent eight
years working on this one
series; I think its time
they turn their attentions
to something else and
use this opportunity to
create new worlds,
stories, and innovative
mechanics. Whatever
comes next needn’t be a
huge new game, either.
Perhaps the dev can take
a note from Pixar and
create small, intimate
new games, experimental
‘shorts’ that can excite us
while a reformed Destiny
continues apace. Qjust one more question...
the team debate this month’s burning issue
CAN BUNGIE BOUNCE BACK?
Bungie’s Destiny is now in its own
hands as the dev has split from
publisher Activision and retained
the rights to its major IP. The
developer confirmed we’ll still be
getting the planned future content.