Bradley Burgess | Rawr
This time last year, I reviewed “Destiny,” the next big game from Bungie, the creators of the “Halo” franchise.
Back then, I was blown away by the game’s gorgeous detail, smart combat and original mixing of role-playing and shooter mechanics.
However, after mulling on it and jumping back into the game one year later, I do see issues with the game, notably some restrictive systems in terms of loot gain and leveling up your character and the minimal story cut scenes.
Now, a new expansion for the game called “The Taken King” is here and it aims to remedy many of the most troublemsome problems of the game. In fact, it’s such a re-haul that Bungie referred to it as a new game rather than another expansion.
So, does “The Taken King” successfully upgrade the game? In short, the answer is yes. 
“The Taken King” starts off with a bang: a gorgeous and epic cut scene depicting a “Star Wars”-esque space battle with Oryx, the Taken King of the title. He is the father of Crota, who players slayed in a previous expansion, and he wants revenge. He also operates a Dreadnaught ship that is all but impenetrable. It’s up to the player to break into the Dreadnaught and slay the Taken King.
The first immediately apparent change seen in the re-haul is that this time around, Bungie put serious effort into the game’s cut scenes and scale. “Destiny” on its own was very limited in terms of what you experienced during gameplay. “The Taken King’s” first mission features so much eye candy and so much great background action that you’ll want to replay it to catch everything you missed the first time.
The story is more fleshed out this time around, with minor characters like Cayde-6, voiced by Nathan Fillion, getting larger roles. There’s also a stressful mission that preys on anyone with a fear of heights that I had to force myself through for the sake of my sanity.
There’s also been a ton of new upgrades to the systems of the game. Gone is the Light system, previously the only way to level up your character past level 20. Now, the new level cap is 40 and you level up just like you did at first — by gaining experience. There’s also been a re-haul to all the old weapons you loved from the game. Now your favorite guns aren’t as good, which is a double-edged sword.
On the one hand, the new guns are tons of fun to use and will give players a lot of new things to work with. But if you’re like me and you’re attached to your guns to the point that you’ve given them human names, it’s heartbreaking to let them go.
“Destiny: The Taken King” adds a lot to the “Destiny” universe and rewards fans with new content to enjoy If you’ve been complaining about the game’s annoying mechanics and lack of story, then this is the expansion for you. It’s great to know that Bungie has listened to feedback and created a better experience for players.