Destiny 2 has an end-game problem

Whether you're already there or still trying to finish your first Nightfall, you will eventually experience Destiny 2's end-game, of which there is none.

[AnubisG]

Well, once you reach 305 there isn't much to do that's worth your time. Yes, you can still raid to get the raid weapons and armor. Do a prestiege nightfall (one time is plenty enough because it's not fun).

They kind of ruined the point of strikes. I played maybe 10-15 strikes from the strike playlist because there is no point to them anymore and D1 strikes were a lot more fun anyway.

The whole game is based on a loot system. It hooks you like a gambling machine but once you realize that and that the game itself get's boring fast....than well, not much to do.

I think D1 was a lot more fun. Or is it just nostalgia talking?

Basically, loot keeps you playing but once you can't level up anymore, it will lose all it's meaning.

[Palitera]

"It hooks you like a gambling machine".
Destiny 1 was a skinner box app too. This is not new in D2. What is different is that the endgame gambling quickly stops providing you anything new or useful.
OP is right. Once you reached Nightfall, the game is basically over. It is easy, unneeded and useless to reach 305. With 280 you can do anything. Compare it to D1, where you needed at least level 29 for the hard raid, which rewarded you with super cool weapons...
D2 is better, but the endgame simply does not exist.

[DARK WITNESS]

The catch with D1 which helped keep people hooked was the random rolls on gear. This created the "God roll" class that people were forever chasing.

personally I hated the random rolls on weapons because if RNG was not on your side, it was about the most frustrating grind in a game I can think of.

D2 fixed this in a way because now all weapons have the same rolls. Once you have a gun, thats it, you don't need to keep chasing after it.

Now add on top of this the fact that the D2 raid and gear is not all that great compared to D1. The story, well I know everyone is happy there is a story this time, but in all honestly, the story was not all that at all. nothing that made me feel I wanted to play through it for a second time.

Add all these factors and ya, once you get to 305 nothing to do.

[lukferr]

All the weapons are shit besides a few really great ones that I always use. There are no random rolls anymore so you know that there is nothing to get. I haven't played Destiny 2 for weeks because there's no point. I don't care about stupid gear and stupid weapons that I won't use. I'm all ready set-up. Finished the raid 3 times in the first week it was out. The week after the same thing, and since then I haven't played. There is no point if they aren't going to increase the light level.

[jjb1981]

I agree. I used to run the strike playlists a couple hours at a time in D1 with the vanguard booster. Getting strike specific gear and skeleton keys was fun. Siva caches were fun too but died out pretty quick.

[joab777]

The issue isn’t content. It’s that the rewards are not meaningful at all. This is worse that having nothing to do. It’s having a lot to do, but not wanting to because it’s not satisfying. It would be easy to introduce some things for people to chase that are very rewarding. Also, there is content, a lot of content that has no rewards at all, which isn’t great for a looter.

The good news is that it is easy to fix. Fingers crossed.

[AnubisG]

See, here you shone light to a very big problem. The content that is there isn't worth replaying without rewards because it isn't that good and rewarding by itself. People need some sort of a reward or something to chase in order to keep playing. I belive that is a huge problem. It is true, play strikes a few times and they become boring to play. Play the raid a few times and the same thing. I know, most games get boring after a while but there are games that you can keep going back to because they are simply fun to play over and over again and that in itself is the reward.

[DaGR8JIBRALTAR]

Yea, I'm growing bored of it already.

[Neonridr]

I think we put up with the lack of doing anything in Destiny 1 and grinded the same stuff over and over again once you reached the cap. This time around we are less forgiving.

However, Destiny 1 @ launch didn't have a ton of stuff to do either once you maxed out. Problem is at least Destiny 1 at the end had a bunch of different things you could do since it had all the DLC incorporated.

[Asuka]

It really does. I feel like this time around Bungie has put way to much thought into game balance, and sacrificing fun and unique gameplay. Too much casual, not enough hardcore. Tokens system isnt exciting at all. There are no standout weapons ala ghorn, last word, and etc. All the guns are kinda the same and the set perks make everything kinda bland. Power level means nothing as it only really applies to Nightfall and Raid. Everything else is normalized (balanced). Even endgame PVP has Power level advantages turned off. Power lvl 280s should not be able to compete against 305s in Trials or Iron Banner. All imo tho....

[thekhurg]

One of the biggest complaints about the original was the lack of balance between normal players, and the people that can sit all day and no-life the game and have advantages.

Bungie solves two things with D2. They balanced the weapons better by having static traits which stopped the top percentage of players from vaulting ahead. It also allows Bungie to better tweak the system for weapon balancing instead of what they went through in the previous game with guns being useless.

They can and hopefully will adjust high caliber rounds in D2 to fix some of the current problems. The rest of the system is working as intended.

The casual market makes up the vast majority of a gaming community. They need to be treated with respect as well.

[Asuka]

Yeah i agree. Destiny 1 wasn't casual friendly at all. I just feel that this time around they put too much effort into balance. Took away some of the depth, and made the endgame feel shallow. But even with all the balancing it still doesn't explain why Power Level is even a thing. It literally does nothing but gate you from activities. If you are too under level you are punished, but you can never be over levelled as everything scales. You always feel constantly weak, and never overpowered. Let alone there are currently only two activities that consider power level as everything else has power advantages turned off. So what even the point? why is it even a thing? Why not just have everything unlock at lvl 20, and not even both with power level? I mean all the guns are essentially the same roles now and output the same damage regardless of power level since everything is normalized...

Not hating on the game just general concerns coming from 1000hrs of D1, and roughly 150hrs of D2.

[EatCrow]

But if the casuals finish the game too fast then they leave. The whole point of sticking to it is to get to the top. If the top is reached early on then the incentive to continue drops to near 0.

That has the effect of a disappearing community.

[EatCrow]

Welcome to the future of tokenism. Cant have people outshine others too much. lol

[Asuka]

FeelsBadMan. For a game that is suppose to be an "investment" game it sure does a good job of not rewarding you or giving you a reason to invest in it xD

[EatCrow]

Destiny isnt the only game doing this kind of unrewarding thing.
Heard about battlefront 2? Those lootboxes control everything and the credits you earn are equal to everyone else's, no matter how much better you performed.

Finally the Equality some were looking for..... it sucks.

[BenRC01]

Pointless playing any other day than Tue for the reset

[gamer9]

I'm giving up hope for the franchise. I thought they were going to have a huge world with lots of npcs and lore. Instead we get the same game with a linear story about the cabal, which nobody asked for.

[ApexWolf22]

For those of us who can't/don't raid, the endgame struggle is real, I'm not even sure if I can get to 305 without doing them, I'm currently at 282 without raiding but I've gotten some exotic gear @ 298, you have to atleast do the nightfalls tho...

[thekhurg]

You can be 305 without ever touching a nightfall strike or raid.

[lukferr]

You don't need to raid. Just do you weekly Flashpoints... the Nightfall... Clan engrams (you can join heaps of clans and you don't have to do anything or talk to anyone) and just collect the power engrams every week... like 4 or so.... and get exotics, and you will be maxed in no time at all.

[InTheZoneAC]

It takes a few minutes to setup lfg nightfall

[Stogz]

It's easier than that now with Guided Games.

[Stogz]

You can, it'll take time tho but completing milestones will get you high powered gear and nitefall as well.

[InTheZoneAC]

There's plenty to do in destiny. You play for the enjoyment. Obviously once you're at 305 you've already putt several dozens of hours into that one character, what are you complaining for? Continue to do random **** or get off the game. I'm at or near 305 on all characters yet I farm for planet/moon vendor gear and play pvp. I do trials on Friday and try to raid on weekend. I don't get the complaining about the lack of anything to do when your options are limitless.

[corroios]

Much more then that. They destroyed the Iron Banner. The grind they want us to do is out of this world. Today i got 85 tokens and 15 more from the quests and i reached lvl 10. This means i got another packet. I got zero armor! Zero!!!! i got 3 weapons that were the same SMG crap a sniper and robe!!!!

The Iron banner got good mechanics, but even those they wrecked.

I agree also about the strikes, they have detroyed them. Everybody does quick runs and they are crap compared to the first one. Everybody does public events. Its the only good upgrade.

[jjb1981]

I feel that Activision stakeholders are mostly responsible for this change. It's waaaaaay too casual. It lost the immersive atmosphere that Destiny 1 had. They hand out Exotic engrams like it's candy. It took me several months to get my first exotic and it was special. Now I expect them every few Heroic Events and then it's just my 7th Coldheart. Eh.

[Tankbusta40]

This is such a joke...you'd rather do the same thing for 9 hours a day and hope you got some "god" roll for an exotic? If that is your idea of fun...yes this game is for "casuals"

People like you instead should be asking for more loot to actually find. For "loot" games Destiny is very sparse on actual loot. You know you could ask for more content or additional things that aren't DLC related.

Actually a "hardcore" gamer such as yourself actually makes games like this worse...since you will mindlessly grind over and over and over...it lets Bungie get away with creating less content.

The game is giving you a message when you get your seventh cold heart in a row... You are just too dumb to pick up on it. Put the game down and try to be less cool and hardcore

[jjb1981]

You act like Destiny 2 solved the problem from the first game. Guess what? Its the same problem. You run around doing a whole lot of nothing and get rewarded for it. It seems like you get offended by the word casual. I never said that I was hardcore or the game should be that way. They rely on an RNG system and dumbed down the random weapon perks for "players" like you because its probably above your comprehension level. I'm glad you got your g-string in a wad over my comment because you're part of the problem.

[yomfweeee]

So like every other game once you dump a large amount of hours to it, there's nothing new to do?

[MrVodka69]

I cant really say much im only going by what i experience. D1 was my loot and shoot game and i got addicted now im starting to try other looter games. I understand what people are saying about the grind and end game is not the same as d1 i guess bungie was trying to please everybody and didnt kno how to do it and keep the hardcore component in the game. But people have that have time to play are feeling it the most, i dont have the time and wish i did, but i am happy the way they did it cause it does seem easier to get the exotics and i didnt have to spend that much time so im caught up with my friends and i meet the requirements of the be this light lvl have mida or merciless kno the raid forwad and upside down people. If they go back to D1 style thats great im still gonna play, but i guess they are learning that its not always good to try to please everybody

[Tankbusta40]

The original never really had an end game either...the entire premise if based on RNG....the first game it just seemed like you spent more time with it because it had different rolls for guns...D1 had tons of artificial grind attached to it...D2 simply has less of that. Both games have lacked a true end game and D3 will probably lack one as well as the entire game revolves around the next DLC.

[Stogz]

It feels like I'm stuck in the same loop as destiny 1. Hop on the weekly reset, do the nitefall then raid. Then thats about it. I dont get why there are so few strikes and no higher level strikes like Prestige Nightfall.

[maybelovehate]

The gear and weapons are still the endgame. And they are still adding in more. Faction Weapons, IB Weapons, etc. I am nowhere close to having everything and I have played a ton. Still missing raid gear on my Warlock and Titan, still missing exotics for my Warlock and Titan. Still missing a lot of the faction weapons and gear. Still missing multiple Trials pieces.

[SojournUK]

There is an endgame?

[HyperMouse]

I find there is nothing worth while doing, past 165 the only chance of getting good loot, is nightfall, raid and weekly grind time of which aside from cayde's loot boxes i dont find the rest that interesting depending on what they are of course. and with no match making i really wont be putting in the effort to do the nightfalls and raids tbh, its just a freaking hassle which it doesnt have to be. Last time i read an article only around 30% of players had done the nightfall and maybe 10% had done the raid, i wonder why.

[PatriotOfIron]

Destiny 2 is one of the reasons why im basically done with most online gaming, and people keep supporting trash like this.

[iiorestesii]

At least the level cap isn't 343

[naBs]

See now this is why I stopped playing D1 so early on and skipped D2. I'm just gonna wait for Anthem and hope for the best lol. That game looks solid but only time will tell xd

[spaceb0y]

Well, it is clear that there is another foe waiting. The story will continue.