Destiny 2 succeeds where the original failed the most: its delivery of a story-driven campaign good enough to match its finely tuned first-person shooter gameplay and great looks. Gathering loot and upgrades through missions and activities with my Fireteam and then finally running the climactic Raid together was a blast. And every time I thought my friends and I were scraping the bottom of the content barrel, Destiny 2 teased us with more that was just a few Light levels away.
From the opening moments, Destiny 2 delivers Dominus Ghaul, an excellent antagonist whose cruelty earns our fury by taking away everything that had been built up in Destiny and its expansions, including our Guardians’ Light. The campaign that follows is filled with brilliant cutscenes that give the cast an opportunity to show great emotional range, and you can hear the sadness and determination in their voices. Zavala (played by Lance Reddick) is unwavering in his plan to assault Ghaul, while Ikora (Gina Torres) seems distraught and near the point of giving up. That context gives both new and returning players a sensible reason to climb the Light-level based power ladder, whether for the first time or all over again. It kept me moving forward through fun missions set in eye-catching environments, including the exhilarating penultimate mission.
Meanwhile, a soaring soundtrack backs pulse-pounding missions before shifting gears to evoke a tinge of sadness. The sound design is impeccable overall, with rewarding splashes of glimmer each time you open a chest or a silencing of the ambient noise when you aim down sights. Every adjustment is important, giving you the audio information you need instead of overwhelming you with everything at once.

As a dedicated Destiny player, I’m gratified by the breadth of opportunities for adventure to be found in Forsaken, but I’m also aware that less dedicated players are going to miss out on a lot of the most compelling weapons, modes, secrets, and missions on offer. Even so, this release has the potential to draw lapsed players back into the fold. Forsaken is deep, mysterious, and vast, three words that echo what players most want from this growing universe.

If you were ever curious about Destiny 2, Shadowkeep is the perfect entry point. If you are a reneged player that struggled with content doubts, there’s no better time to come back. And if you are neither of the aforementioned, you probably should be. Shadowkeep is everything every player wanted from Destiny 2, and in true Bungie fashion, it was delivered with a bang – which presumably emanated from the servers as they exploded on launch night.

Pros:

• Much needed revision of content delivery
  
• Great atmosphere throughout in environment design and score
  
• Armor 2.0 encourages equipment investment
  
• Seasonal Artifact is a unique idea

♥♥♥♥:

• Repeated content loses its shine faster as it feels overly familiar
  
• No true conclusion to Scarlet Keep and the Nightmare enemies

What started as one of the slimmest expansions ever has developed into a memorable adventure with some of the best activities and story moments in Destiny 2's history. With the full scope of Beyond Light now in view, I can safely say that I'll be playing this expansion quite heavily for weeks and months to come, and with renewed but cautious confidence in Bungie's ability to deliver content at a rate that's both sustainable and tantalizing, which will be especially important as the studio embarks on a three-expansion trilogy.

Beyond Light's five-hour opening campaign mirrors the overall expansion experience: the first half is a bit weak and things just sort of happen as you dawdle around Europa, but Bungie really sets the hook in act two. It helps that the backdrop to all this is one of the prettiest destinations we've ever had – I'll never get tired of the snowstorms and reflective ice – but the best part is how the story unfolds in layers. Our brief dalliance with Eramis, a new Fallen antagonist who uses the Darkness power of Stasis to start an uprising on Europa, delivers some refreshingly challenging boss fights and witty dialogue, but it's only in the post-game that the overarching narrative starts to pick up speed.

Pros:

• Exciting campaign on a gorgeous moon
  
• Fun new powers
  
• Incredible raid
  
• Europa Weather Effects

♥♥♥♥:

• Not a lot of new guns
  
• Stasis customization still limited

Personal Rating:

• 7.5/10 Story
  
• 9/10 Game Play
  
• 10/10 graphics with 2K/4K Ultra Settings