2) Destiny – The Taken King
Destiny had its fair share of teething problems leading up to release, that’s certainly no secret. Instead of burying its head in the sand and swiftly moving on, though, Bungie spent the next 12 or so months post-launch working on a project that would hopefully rectify many of the criticisms aimed at the ambitious sci-fi shooter.
The Taken King arrived just a few days following Destiny‘s first birthday, bringing with it an overhaul that, while not quite warranting the status of sequel, certainly did more for the longevity of the title than many Guardians may have perhaps suspected six months earlier. Sadly, I’m not the lucky owner of a time machine, but it’s my firm belief that, had Bungie instead opted to let Destiny‘s problems fester until the arrival of Destiny 2, there might not have been a sequel at all.
Besides introducing an entirely brand new, standalone story that was infinitely more coherent than the base game’s jumbled mess, The Taken King marked a complete overhaul of the original levelling system, introduced one new subclass to each of the Hunter, Titan and Warlock roles and dumped an armory’s worth of new gear for players to seek out.
Of course, the expansion’s King’s Fall raid deserves mention, too, which despite not being as fondly remembered as Vault of Glass, emphasized just how much Bungie’s talent had evolved over such a short period of time.
More of the same for Destiny 2 please, Bungie!