Destiny is far from a perfect game, but ultimately the sum truly is greater than its parts.

Destiny 2 has to be one of the most frustrated gaming experiences I’ve ever had. It is a grind to play and requires a massive time commitment to achieve anything of substance in the game. The story itself can feel impenetrable, and unless a gamer is willing to do some research, there are moments it feels like a mindless shooter. The base campaign was meh, the Eververse store sells content that should be given as in game achievement…I could go on forever. So, why am I still playing this game? Destiny 2, despite all of the aforementioned concerns, is a dream of a shooter; with amazing mechanics, an amazing story, best explained not by the actual developer, but by one of the fantastic lore masters on YouTube, and might be one of the best cooperative gaming experiences on console (or now PC).

If there is one thing that Bungie has absolutely mastered, its shooting some of the worst villains humanity as ever faced, with weapons that puts every other shooter to shame. Every weapon in Destiny 2 has its own personality, characteristics, and perks. Sure, that doesn’t make Destiny unique, as other shooters like the Borderlands franchise provide players with a similar arsenal. But nothing equals how it feels to fire one of the games legendary or the rare high end weapons, Destiny’s exotics. I know this seems like an excessive statement, but occasionally they feel like you have personally become the embodiment of God’s divine wrath. Watching multiple Hive Thrall burst into flames from a well placed Sunshot round, or coming back from near death after killing one of the Fallen with the Crimson hand cannon….well, it makes the grind to obtain them worth it.

Destiny’s story has always been possibly the major failing of the game. In the first Destiny players unlocked grimoire cards through in game activity which could be read…..on a mobile app. The grimoire cards provided an amazing wealth of information, but were never really integrated into the game. In Destiny 2, Bungie opted for a more easy to understand story of loss and redemption, but the lore of the grimore cards was missing. But I did tell you that the story was amazing right? The thing is, you have to be willing to watch a lot of YouTube.

YouTube has become the home of prolific content creators who have succeeded in communicating and exploring the story of the Destiny universe better than the actual creators of the game. My Name Is Byf and Mylein Games have explored the world of Destiny in an astonishing level of detail. Need to understand the difference between the three player classes, warlocks, hunters, and my beloved titans? Check out Byf or Mylein. Any game topic from the villains of Destiny or the history of prominent weapons like Thorn have all been explored in loving detail. Without the community of lore masters that has arisen, I don’t think Destiny would be sustainable as a franchise. Think I’m exaggerating? Mylein Games just got finished working on the official grimoire for Bungie, that shows the value that the YouTube has brought to Destiny.

After years of playing Call of Duty, Destiny 2 for me personally offers a better gaming experience. Destiny 2 does offer a player vs player mode (the Crucible), but the cooperative play modes are what keep me around. The game’s strikes, where three players work cooperatively to take down a specific threat, are one of the most entertaining gamer experiences I’ve had. Saving a teammate at the last minute, or watching another player bail the team out at the last minute is enough to keep me playing long after I should taken my butt to sleep.

With Forsaken (the game’s latest DLC) dropping on September 4, this is a great time to join the Destiny community. Destiny 2 isn’t a perfect game and Bungie has made massive mistakes (aka the Eververse micro transactions) but it looks like they are headed in the right direction.

I hope I see you in the tower guardian. #sunbreakertitanforever.