Destiny has always had really great missions and quests. Back in Destiny 1, Lost to Light stood tall as one of the best missions in the game, pushing players to their limits and demanding excellent teamwork and fighting skills. But not everyone wants non-stop action, some players want some exploring and puzzle solving in between the shooting, and the new Presage quest nails this balance.
While the base game of Destiny 1 had some pretty average quests – thanks in part to the troubled development and the restitching of the story – the subsequent expansions really showcased how good Bungie is at designing missions. Things like the Paradox mission where players ventured into the Vault of Glass to help Praedyth, Last Rites that took players on a stealth mission into Crota’s End to stop a Hive ritual, the initial fight against Oryx in Regicide, and of course A Guardian Rises.
There are also a whole lot of fantastic missions in Destiny 2. Missions like the Whisper, Zero Hour, the quest to save Saint-14 from his own death, the numerous missions that highlight the relationship between Drifter and the Emissary of the Nine, the Stealing Stasis mission where Ghost pretends to sound like Drifter, and many more are all rich with lore and world-building as well as tough combat and some puzzle solving.
Cut to Season of the Chosen, and players are once more treated to a fantastic mission in the form of Presage. This one takes players onto a seemingly abandoned Cabal ship called the Glykon as they search for a Guardian who triggered a distress signal.
The whole mission is narrated by Osiris, a character who is being built up more and more since his weak introduction in the Curse of Osiris DLC. He’s been interacting with Crow, Saladin, Saint-14 and now he’s giving players an insight into the theatrical Emperor Calus. Part of the mission dialogue reveals that this ship was used to create a crown – the Crown of Sorrow – which players will remember from the raid by the same name.
It would seem that a Guardian was actually helping Emperor Calus fuse this crown with Darkness in an attempt to commune. At least, that’s what I gathered from the mission. It was so exciting to hear about an event and object that I’ve already fought and defeated. It feels like it’s also hinting at something greater, some reveal that is yet to occur. I think what Bungie said, about setting up dominos ahead of the next big DLC, is actually coming to fruition.
Outside of the lore revealed during the mission, it also features a great balance between exploration, some puzzle solving, and challenging combat. The puzzles themselves are more about exploration and discovery, where you need to throw a lever to open a door, which reveals a fuse that grants you access to another side area. These are nice exploration moments that help break up the combat.
In terms of the combat, the lack of a timer really helps alleviate any stress that may have otherwise been present. Things like the Whisper and Zero Hour were great, but players couldn’t exactly spend much time exploring the environments. Hopefully Bungie brings back the time-limit in future tough missions, but this was a good change of pace.
If this is the kind of quality I can expect from future Exotic quests in Destiny 2, I’m going to be a happy Guardian.
