It has roughly been a month since the launch of Destiny 2 Lightfall, and the reception overall has been mixed. While players have enjoyed the new gameplay options, or mourning the loss of a beloved cast member, they were disappointed by a subpar narrative as well as an undercooked new social system. But in a recent update, Bungie has stated that changes will be coming to the game, including some changes to their Guardian Ranks and Commendations system.
Destiny 2 Commendations and Guardian Ranks changes
In an official post on Bungie's website, the studio reflects on the feedback received since the release of Destiny 2 Lightfall. The post started the game's director, Joe Blackburn, assuring players that the ongoing narrative of the game would answer questions throughout the year leading into Destiny 2 The Final Shape.
The post then addresses both Guardian Ranks and the current state of the Commendations system. The idea behind Guardian Ranks is that it is meant to represent a player's overall experience and skill within Destiny 2. New players would start at rank 1 and could increase their rank by completing certain objectives. In practice, it led to a lot of players stuck at rank 6 due to certain objectives being long and tedious grinds. In addition, any incentive to increase the rank was blunted by the knowledge all ranks would reset at the start of each new season.
Bungie has announced that changes to the system will be coming. First, the Guardian Rank displayed to other players will be the highest rank you earned last season. If you gain a higher rank than you did last season, this display will update. Second, regaining lost Guardian Ranks will be a much faster process. Instead of completing every objective in a rank you've already earned, you just need to complete objectives that are tinged blue. This will allow veteran players to quickly renew Guardian Ranks. But if those ranks are not renewed by the following season, your displayed Guardian Rank will drop.
Commendations face a similar problem. After completing an activity, players can give Commendations to their fellow players, which contributes to an overall Commendation Score. These Commendations are usually tied to the event in question (PvP, Gambit, Raid, etc.) and are meant to let players recognize extra effort in those events. But the execution was messy. Not only was the menu glitchy and inconsistent, but any player could also receive Commendations regardless of activity participation. In addition, Commendation Score was linked to Guardian Rank objectives. Bungie's solution was they removed or reduced any Guardian Rank objectives that involved Commendation and are adding in new eligibility rules for those who participated in the activity. They will also add a new Commendation called "Best Dressed" for Guardians that like looking good while in a firefight.
Bungie also addressed some difficulty tweaks coming across the board for Destiny 2. Enemy health is being reduced in certain non-Raid endgame activity and Heist Battlegrounds will see some reduced enemy waves. The new patrol zone of Neomuna will see an increased spawn rate of the Vex Incursion Patrol event as well as additional damage nerfs on Cabal Threshers. Finally, the drop rates for exotic armor in Legend and Master Lost Sectors will be increasing.
Finally, Bungie gave players a sneak peek of things to come in future seasons. This includes new armor mods for the buildcrafting system, new Aspects for each Strand subclass, and some changes to seasonal artifact mods. But the biggest addition appears to be Exotic Armor Focusing. This will allow players to game the system more when it comes to the most sought-after weapons in Destiny 2. Instead of completely relying on RNG, players can spend additional endgame resources to have an exotic item either from a certain expansion (Shadowkeep, Beyond Light, etc.), or get a specific exotic for even more endgame resources. This system will be going live as part of the upcoming Season of the Deep.
