Destiny’s release has been one of the most controversial we’ve seen in a few years, splitting critics and players right down the middle. There’s something a little bit Marmite about Bungie’s latest sci-fi shooter – you either love it or you hate it.
The question we’re asking is – does it deserve the hate? Sort of. Kinda. In a way. Not really.
Things have been blown well out of proportion with regards to Destiny, mainly because Bungie and Activision spent so much time hyping up the game, promising features that we’re even planned to be in the game from day one, they sort of set themselves up for the public backlash.
Maybe we’re directing the flack in the wrong direction. Maybe we should be questioning the marketing strategies that have been employed by Activision and Bungie. Destiny is a fine game, it’s actually pretty damn good and if you’ve not yet played it I highly recommend you hop on a mates copy and see for yourself. The problem is the hype. They spent so much time hyping up the game that it got too much with Bungie promoting the game as a full-on MMO, when in reality it’s more of an MMO lite, if you will. Not to mention the claims that Destiny will be the shooter that redefines the genre, as spewed out by many publications in the run up to release.
Would Destiny be getting the same reviews if the expectations weren’t so high? I think the answer is no, Destiny would probably be seeing higher scores across the board. Many reviewers criticised the game based on their expectations, not on their experience with the game, resulting in lower scores. This is the curse of marketing – do too good a job and your game sells extremely well but you get called out on some of the B.S you fed the consumers, or alternatively just do a run-of-the-mill promotion, honestly representing your product and see your game sell modest numbers.
Either way, Destiny doesn’t deserve the flack, it’s a decent game in its own right. Blame the hype created by the industry and if you’ve not yet played it, go in with realistic expectations and you may just find you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Have you played Destiny? Did your expectations damage your opinion of the game? Let us know down in the comments below.