Destiny patch 1.0.2 makes loot-collecting more pleasant

By Adam Rosenberg September 27, 2014

bungie bans players modified consoles destiny 17 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

That didn’t take long. After fixing the so-called “loot cave” item farming in Destiny but saying little to address the issues that led to the popularity of the exploit, developer Bungie has detailed its upcoming patch v1.0.2. And sure enough, gear is the big focus.

The upcoming patch, expected to go live during the week ending October 3, 2014, makes big changes to the way Engrams — Destinyspeak for unidentified gear — are handled in the game. Post-patch, Legendary (purple) Engrams will always produce Legendary items or better. Likewise, Rare (blue) Engrams will always produce Rare or better, and the chances of them spitting out a Legendary are also to be increased.

In addition, an assortment of challenges — Daily Heroic, Weekly Heroic, and the Vanguard: Tiger playlist (level 24 recommended) — will also now provide Legendary gear rewards in addition to their existing rewards. Similarly, Ascendant crafting materials — which are used specifically for Legendary gear upgrades — will now be marked with that rarity, to better identify the purpose they serve.

Related: How to boost those Light levels after level 20 in Destiny

Take note, farmers: There’s no point in hoarding your Legendary Engrams in anticipation of the coming patch. Once the patch descends, all hoarded, unidentified purples will automagically convert to blues. So get thee to the Cryptarch.

Here’s Bungie in the patch notes, demonstrating that it has a sense of humor about the balance missteps with gear distribution:

Legendary Engram items that exist in your inventory will be demoted to Rare quality when the patch goes live, so decode them while you can. But let’s be honest–even if you don’t, we all know they were blues already…

You rascals!

Players! What do you think of the coming changes?

Editors' Recommendations

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…

Gaming

Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 desperately needs to give players more health

Player crouching behind cover in Warzone 2.0.

In Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0, gunfights can end in less than a second. In fact, some weapons have the potential to down a player in less than 400 milliseconds, which is wildly punishing in a mode that can last upwards of 25 minutes. While this isn't an inherent flaw, many elements around the fast time to kill (TTK) are disproportionately slow, such as aim down sights (ADS), reload times, and other animations. It's demoralizing to spend so long playing a match, only to get taken out in mere milliseconds by a player who happened to be aiming in your direction.

As Warzone 2.0 begins to roll out tweaks, there's one thing I'm hoping to see changed: an increase in the TTK to match other battle royale games like Fortnite or Apex Legends -- or at the very least, to match the original Warzone.
Give me a break
Players have complained about the fast TTK since the first Warzone game, so much so, that Activision and Raven Software actually increased the default player health from 100 to 150. With three armor plates equipped, your max total health could be as high as 300.

Gaming

Destiny 2 Halloween event: details and rewards

Three guardians wearing halloween armor.

It's that spooky time of the year, and what better way to celebrate than with some limited-time events in every Guardian's favorite game? As is the tradition at this point, Destiny 2 is embracing the holiday season with a limited-time event with exclusive themed rewards around the Halloween holiday. The entire tower will be getting a spooky makeover, but the really exciting part is, of course, the special event and rewards you can earn.

Called the Festival of the Lost, this event is technically still part of the current Season of Plunder but is available for all players for free, regardless of what expansions they have or have not purchased. While Bungie hasn't fully outlined all the specifics of how Festival of the Lost will work, there have been some details shared, plus a couple of leaks, to sink our teeth into. If you want to get your Guardian ready for some holiday fun, here's all the information out there on the Destiny 2 Halloween event.

Gaming

Why the Destiny 2 and Fortnite collab makes perfect sense for Bungie

Destiny 2 skins in Fortnite.

Destiny 2 is collaborating with the Epic Games Store, including swapping some cosmetics with Fortnite and Fall Guys. This announcement leaked ahead of Bungie's Destiny 2 showcase on Tuesday, and the community reaction was mixed. After all, Destiny 2, Fortnite, and Fall Guys aren't similar games at all. But after seeing the collaborations in action, they make perfect sense. Destiny 2has seen a lot of changes over the past year, and although it's still a far cry from Fortnite or Fall Guys, trading cosmetics fits right into where Bungie, Epic Games, and Sony are heading.

Destiny 2 on Epic Games Store - Fortnite + Fall Guys Crossover Trailer
A tale of two games
The new skins come on the heels of Destiny 2 launching on the Epic Games Store, where Bungie is offering its 30th Anniversary content pack for free for the first week. Bungie says the collaboration is a celebration of the new launch, with three new skins each in Fortnite, Destiny 2, and on September 13, Fall Guys. Nothing is changing with any of these games; they're just adding new cosmetics. Still, the community isn't taking it that way. The friction with the Fortnite and Destiny 2 collaboration centers around how different the games are. The only common thread they share is that they're both multiplayer shooters, but even then, the games are so different in style and structure that they can't be compared.