Weekend Closing Thoughts

So overall I think that this is a phenomenal game, especially considering the many hurdles that had to be overcome to get it to launch.

My one worry about it, and this was my worry going into it as well, is that it is not a game for "everyone". This kind of risk/reward loop is not what most players want from a video game (and that is okay). And with Destiny 2, Bungie very frequently caves when social media lights up with minor complaints (as long as the complaints are loud enough). Setting aside the "worthiness" of the complaints/changes made in that context, the result is that Destiny 2 always feels caught in the middle. Like Bungie can't decide who the game is for. Is it for casual players who just want to vibe, or is it for people who want to grind, or is it for people who want to play intense challenging pve/pvp content? The D2 content drops, fixes, and patches bounce wildly back and forth across the whole spectrum. But a very real part of that is that Destiny 2 is alone in it's genre. There are no other games that do what it does, the way that it does it. So it is stuck having to appease everyone, instead of having a slice of the audience to focus on.

If they do the same for Marathon, it will die. The only way this game survives is if it commits wholeheartedly to being a well polished but niche title, and invests in it's specific audience (which seems to be middle aged sci-fi nerds and long time Bungie game fans). Based on the types of criticisms I heard and read of it, it sounds like there are numerous other games that people can play if they find Marathon is not for them. And that is okay, and Bungie needs to be okay with that reality. If they can do that, I can see this game being here for a long, long, long time

Beyond that, there isn't much more to say. I'm sad the slam is over. If it wasn't I'd be out there now scrounging around with my Rook looking for loot and easy players to pick off. Even with only two maps I could have given this game another couple hundred hours and still felt like there was more to do, more to learn, and more to find.

See you all on Thursday!