Summary
It’s not uncommon forDestiny 2to be addressed as a FOMO-heavy game, something that has deep roots in its seasonal model and vaulting content of all sorts, including seasons themselves and even weapons, in some cases. This fear of missing out is something Bungie has been trying to moderate for a while now, as it can be hard to justify cycling content out every few months in a market filled with other live-service titles, even consideringDestiny 2’s success. However,Destiny 2’s Season of the Witchwas a chance for Bungie to start from scratch in terms of community morale after good, sincere attempts to restore faith in the game after Lightfall, and the recent “Flashback event” for Season of the Worthy put a dent in those same efforts.
AlongsideDestiny 2’s seasonal modelcame its season passes, which have historically been sold for around $10 and included in Legendary Editions for expansions, so that players could purchase a year’s worth of content for a good price. The main allure of season passes is and always was that they not only include all the seasonal content associated with them, but players can also level up to obtain multiple in-game items and cosmetics. However, once they are gone, they are gone for good, which is the ultimate FOMO trigger. Bungie’s approach in Season of the Witch is good on the one hand, but immensely controversial on the other.
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Why Destiny 2’s Season of the Worthy Cosmetics Feel Like a Scam
The Flashback event that was released with this week’s reset inDestiny 2was a great idea on paper, as Bungie had announced some cool things from past seasons would come back in the Eververse store for players to collect. It was a first blow at the typical “You had to be there” mindset ofDestiny 2seasons, as skipping one now finally means that players can still theoretically get past items they missed out on.
The main problem with this is that the Flashback event is no actual event, but rather a collection of items being sold exclusively for Silver, the real-money currency of the game. Not only that, but everySeason of the Worthy cosmetic inDestiny 2right now is being sold at full price for regular releases in the Eververse shop, rather than a discounted price or even for Bright Dust. As it stands, it’s over $80 to purchase the Season of the Worthy armor set for all three classes and all the additional cosmetics.
In comparison, these items were obtained withDestiny 2’s season passfor just $10, including a whole season’s worth of content and stories. So, while the idea is a good way to fight FOMO, the execution is at best very lacking. Having players purchase these items for a season pass' cost would have been more acceptable, or better yet, adopt a system likeHalo Infinite’s where gamers can choose which pass they’re progressing toward at any given time. Also making these cosmetics earned for free in some way would have been a fantastic choice, but one that was never to be expected.
Considering the very steep price and the fact that players can’t even get some sort of bundle for these items, the Flashback event is unlikely to ever be received positively by the community if it returns in the future. Furthermore, some gamers are arguing that this marketing decision comes at a very strange time, as Bungie made an Eververse set for Season of the Witch free as a ritual reward to make up for its lack of communication about ritual armor sets inDestiny 2. Thus, Season 22 still has its own fully-priced Silver armor set now, which is not a good look no matter the intentions. Overall, this debacle should spark more conversations about in-game prices, especially after the ‘Destiny 2microtransaction hell’ controversy from a few months ago.
Destiny 2is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
