1. Looking For Group Integration
Destiny’s biggest problem by far is a lack of matchmaking options: aside from Strike or Crucible playlists, players cannot use matchmaking to connect to random people and if they want to participate in raids, weekly strikes or random activities, they have to find their own groups.
As a result, fan sites like DestinyLFG have sprung up, offering a way for Destiny players to create or join groups to complete content. A quick flick through shows hundreds of Guardians wanting to connect with other players immediately – why aren’t Bungie implementing their own system for this?
2. Ranked Crucible Play
The demand for ranked online play is ever-growing, thanks to the thriving competitive gaming scene. Destiny’s Crucible might be slightly unbalanced (damn those fusion rifles!) but it continues to be an engaging, exciting and enjoyable experience.
Currently, the only way to judge a player’s skill in the Crucible is their Light Level and even then, a Level 32 player may never have set foot in the Crucible. Destiny power leveling make upgrades easier. PvP thrives on competition and superiority, and Destiny is no different.
3. New Game Modes
The dynamic nature of the MMO genre has yet to be fully realised in Destiny. It is always evolving, always adding something new or offering something unique for players to try and Destiny could definitely use a constant flow of unique ideas and concepts.
Limited time events are a good start (the Iron Banner is especially enjoyable when it rolls around) as they bring players back into the game but permanent additions will keep those players sticking around for longer.
4. Clan/Guild Implementation
Destiny is designed to be played with friends; missions, strikes and raids are all playable in groups and for the harder challenges, communication and co-operation are a must. Players who enjoy being a lone wolf and causing trouble need to get used to the Crucible or rethink their lack of teamwork.
Clans have been in Destiny from launch but players have to go to Bungie’s website to create, manage or join one – why? The game actively encourages clan play for the harder difficulty strikes and raids, yet fails to fully integrate the system within the game.
5. More Incentive To Explore Solo Content
Destiny’s single player issues are well documented by now; the lack of variety in missions and non-existent story rubbed players the wrong way from day one. Those issues will take time to sort out though and will probably have to be re-explored in a large scale expansion.
What Bungie can do right now is give players more incentive to explore and complete the single player content. One playthrough the game will reward players with new Sparrows and a few other items; replaying on a harder difficulty offers no rewards at all.
6. More Activities In The Tower
As the main social hub of Destiny, Guardians will find themselves in the Tower a lot: whether it’s to collect bounties, decrypt Engrams or meeting up with friends, pretty much every session of Destiny begins there.
It’s a shame then that there’s very little to actually do in the Tower. There’s some intriguing social activities – like a ball to kick about and a weird fan on top of the postmaster’s shack, but aside from that, very little else.
7. Remove The HUD Option
While reviews of the game were mixed at launch, many could agree on one point – Destiny is a stunning, stunning game. Bungie’s experience in creating sci-fi worlds is evident throughout with stunning vistas, intricate architecture and beautiful skyboxes creating worlds players were eager to dive into.
Think back to when the beta was first launched; were people discussing the pros and cons of the gameplay? Retelling their adventures on Old Earth? No, because they were all too busy taking screenshots of their character in front of that incredible view from atop the Tower.
8. Extra D-Pad Emotes
Without voice chat integration, the early days of Destiny were a communication wilderness. Guardians communicated through a series of dance moves, points and waves – it was a simpler time.
All jokes aside, communication has been a struggle in Destiny since launch. Of course, part of the problem lies in many players using cross-game chat systems (like Xbox Live’s Party Chat) to talk to their friends without having to play the same game; there’s not really much Bungie can do about that.
9. Player Trading
Player trading is a key aspect of many MMOs and given Destiny’s focus on social activities and playing in groups, it seems bizarre not to include the feature at launch. Then again, Destiny encourages players to grind for items and upgrades; player trading undermines that core gameplay value somewhat. Plus, with Exotic weapons and gear becoming increasingly common, is there really a need for player to player trading?
10. A Better Variety Of Bounties
Bounties are the lifeblood of Destiny; aside from the daily heroic mission, they are the main incentive for players to come back day after day. Ten new bounties spawn everyday – five based around Vanguard (PvE) activities and five based around the Crucible (PvP) and while they’re a welcome addition to the game, they are very rarely interesting, especially for players who have been coming back regularly since launch. Even players who come back for a few days in a row will see the same bounties several times, and there’s very little opportunity to experience something new.