The only insight I can give you is my story on it. Back when I first heard about Destiny and saw the concept art, I was thinking "Whoa.. Bungie, you are truly a creative force like no other." What were those minds at Bungie cooking up? Then the gameplay reveal came out. I saw it and was amazed. The Warlock dropped out of his ship, as the scene faded in to first person, those cinematic chords were still playing while you were in awe gazing at the vista. The true Bungie touch, mixing visuals and sound to really hit your sweet spots. His friend dropped in, waved, and you think, "Huh, clever! New game, new style, new personality, looking good!" It was a little comedic, but that didn't take away from the gunplay. [i]Skip to Devil Walker Scene[/i] We have here showcased a [i]Public Event[/i] that put you under the impression that these events had impacts on the environment and were important to the game. The tower in the back fell, a huge ship came overhead with a fleet; an assault! They rushed in to fight. Soon, Guardians from all angles took up arms, protecting their home. What we saw was a new approach to the first-person-shooter experience, and it was fantastic. [i]My Pre-Launch Impression[/i] As I said, the Public Events, to me, seemed like they were going to be important- where the game would truly happen and develope. I [u]believe[/u] Bungie had said that their world would breathe and evolve over time. What I took that to meaning is that these events would take place and forever change the game, and if you weren't there to experience it yourself, you would hear the stories of those who saw it, who witnessed, who fought it, who ran. Those who fought would have something to show for it. [i]"You see this armor? This was crafted from the skull of a Fallen Archon who lead the assault on the Cosmodrome."[/i] These events wouldn't have names, but the community would give them names. Not only that, but there would be talk in the community of a special seed, a Guardian who stood out, one who truly became Legend in these fights. One who created the waves for all Guardians to follow. Under [The Legend's] presence, you know you are assured victory. A breathing, developing world based on events, story telling by the community, and legends. What a world to experience. Bungie; true masters of the arts. [i]My Post-Launch Experience[/i] Absolutely not the game I expected. Not living, not breathing, not social, not this, that, broken, disappointing for all the same reasons everyone says. Will it ever be what I hoped? Probably not, the formula is already written here. Story, Strikes, Bounties, Raids, and Fetch-Quests. Those things are there because that was their intention. A mission based game. However, what illudes me is why Bungie showcased the open world, cinematic, event style gameplay and not Strikes, or Raids? I'm not one to go pointing fingers, but the [i]ViDocs,[/i] the [i]Gameplay Reveal,[/i] and what Bungie has to show for it just doesn't add up. I may be totally wrong, but remember when they pushed the release date back? Why? I feel as though Activision said "No, you rework this game and set it up to be sold in chunks or we won't publish it." So they did, and now we have a game lacking content, missing things, screwed up loot systems, and is overall disappointing. Does that sound like Bungie? No, it doesn't. In some pre-launch videos, you can see that there is a full cinematic experience happening, conversations, character, conflict.. However these things seemed to be ripped out. Bungie does not deliver a story like what Destiny has, nor a lacking experience as it has. So, I feel as though they were forced by direction of Activision of fear of not publishing it, to rework it and rushed to get it ready in those months it was pushed back. They were probably even reworking it prior to then. In conclusion, I am upset, but I still find the game entertaining to a degree. Giving myself a challenge with harder level Strikes is fun to me. It gives me something to overcome, and now Queen's Wrath is out. Yes, it is missions we have already played, but you can get good materials to upgrade your gear and go to the next difficulty. I like to push myself to overcome the higher threats, and that is where my entertainment comes from. If you forget what Bungie said what this was going to be and look at it for what it is, you could see it is a mediocre, fun-to-play title that you can go back to and progress yourself in. The mechanics don't work correctly because it was seemingly cut into pieces, and thrown together salad-style. I bet Bungie had greater plans for Destiny, but coporate derective said otherwise.