While we’d heard Destiny 2 was coming to next-gen consoles, Bungie has revealed more details around the feature, saying that current players will be able to upgrade to PS5 and Xbox Series X versions for free. Both will play at 4K 60fps, too.
Xbox One owners of Destiny 2 will be able to upgrade to the Xbox Series X version via Microsoft's Smart Delivery program, which allows cross-purchasing across console generations for participating games. Though Sony doesn’t have a similar program, PS4 Destiny 2 players will simply be allowed to upgrade to the PS5 version for free, which could set a precedent.
Destiny 2 will run at 4K 60FPS on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X.All Deştiny 2 will come with you to next-gen for FREE.On PS, you can upgrade to PS5 for free.On Xbox, they support Smart Delivery.June 9, 2020
What’s more, Bungie says it will also introduce next-gen crossplay: PS5 owners will be able to play Destiny 2 with those on PS4; likewise, Xbox Series X gamers will be able to team up with those on Xbox One.
It’s unclear if this will be feasible at launch or if it’s coming later, but we know what’s coming down the line in 2021 – cross-platform play that will finally align players on Sony and Microsoft consoles, per The Verge.
Bungie made the announcements alongside a content roadmap for the next three years, starting with the next expansion, Beyond Light, which launches on September 22, 2020. That will be followed by 2021’s The Witch Queen and finally Lightfall in 2022 – so expect to be playing the sci-fi first-person shooter for a long time to come.
Last but not least, Bungie used today's event to introduce a ‘Destiny Content Vault’ to bring popular content from Destiny and Destiny 2 back into the main game – the Cosmodrome from the original game is coming to Destiny 2 sometime in ‘fall’ (Q3 2020) and strikes like the beloved Vault of Glass are coming later in the year and into 2021. But like a Destiny-style Disney Vault, other content must be rotated out, so expect to see Curse of Osiris and others dropped from the game later in 2020.
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Destiny 2, paving the way for Sony cross-generation
While Microsoft’s confusingly-named Smart Delivery program was introduced as a way for games to keep players as they transition from the Xbox One to the Xbox Series X – potentially losing revenue, but ensuring an easier console transition by gamers who don’t want to buy the same title twice – there’s no equivalent program for Sony players moving from the PS4 to PS5.
Destiny 2 could serve as precedent for more titles to follow suit in giving free licenses to folks who upgrade to the PS5, even if Sony doesn’t canonize it with a proper program name. This could be a way for titles to do the same for PlayStation as they’ve already pledged to do via Microsoft Smart Delivery, like Cyberpunk 2077 or Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, as The Verge pointed out. We’ll wait to see if other titles end up imitating Bungie’s move.
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