Recent reviews by shug

Incredibly satisfying combat, great visuals and genuinely engrossing character development and narrative. The story is complex yet understandable, and a lot of work seems to have been put into presenting lore items in an engaging and progression-appropriate way. The weapon crafting system lets you pick and choose weapon abilities and stats, but it becomes obvious quite early what the better options are. Gameplay can be initially difficult, but mid to late game upgrades and items lighten it significantly. While the main story isn't incredibly long, new game plus offers a wealth of additional upgrades and some new lore opportunities. The game is interesting and worth picking up even for a single playthrough, but what really makes this game shine is running through new game plus and learning all the previously hidden stories.

started playing to spite Bungie, kept playing to have fun

Warframe but with Genshin Impact monetization and anime skins. Gameplay is interesting but youre always left wondering whether you really should keep farming for that new character or just spend the 15USD to unlock them right now.

Nostalgic blast from the past that is ruined by Activision's inability to properly create a game. Opening main menu volume is independent from the in-game volume settings, meaning that the Activision ad plays at max system volume. 2018 is far too recent for a game to suffer from a glaring lack of competency, but everything else past the main menu is great!

-POST RANKED 2.0 REVIEW-
Overall great 5 vs 5 FPS that, as always, is better with a group of friends. Servers are generally 93%+ OK depending on your region, but if you're playing on a server far from you (playing on West when you live in the East) you may experience minor latency issues. Not considering bad internet, any US server is by and large playable regardless of your location. If you're planning to play with overseas friends be sure to figure out the closest server between you all to have the best overall experience. If you came for a competitive yet fairly-balanced atmosphere the casual modes will likely not be of interest and you'll be locked into deathmatch and un/ranked modes. Casual modes like hostage and secure area can be fun when played to have fun, but the game quickly becomes frustrating when playing with the sole intention of winning as the modes aren't balanced for competitive play and many gadget interactions unique to this mode are not explained in-game. Ranked 2.0 dramatically changed how you achieve your desired rank. Instead of being placed into a skill-bracket similar to yours and grinding through the ranks, everyone starts at the bottom and works their way up by winning games against players of similar skill. The mode (with the exception of cheaters) is extremely enjoyable when in a team of 5. When in groups of 3 or less the experience is still enjoyable but noticeably more frustrating in mid to higher elos (gold 1+ hidden MMR) when other players won't communicate. Generally speaking:
---Pros---
>Operator selection is always growing and while you can argue that the game is becoming too futuristic utility dependent, at least they update the game frequently.
>The game is popular enough that educational content (map and operator guides, update comparisons, new angles and peeks, etc) is readily available and easily understood by those with a basic understanding of R6 or a general grip on FPS games.
>The possibilities in gameplay are nearly endless. You can make your own angles, peek-holes, or setup the map to your advantage in almost any situation.
>Ranked 2.0 removed many stressors common to traditional ranked systems as you'll pretty much only be facing teams who have a similar hidden, skill-based MMR. Over time games will become harder and elo gains reduced, but you don't have to play with actual copper-ranked players when you're in copper (unless your hidden MMR reflects that rank).
---Cons---
>For my group, a single cheater ruins the vibe of a whole night. While cheaters aren't nearly as common as they were in previous seasons, they are still there waiting to ruin your ranked experience. Some players encounter cheaters in casual game modes as well but this appears to be much less frequent.
>If you prefer a game you can aim-duel your way to victory in you likely won't have a maximally good time, especially at the upper end of the ranking system. The complexity of map destruction and increasingly futuristic utility can make many duels feel one-sided or cheesy. This is not to say that aim isn't king, but knowing is almost always half the battle. The meta does bounce between gun fights and utility though, so keep that in mind if choosing this as your "main game."
>Ranked 2.0 has removed a lot of the rewarding but harsh grind towards the top prevalent in most FPS ranking systems. Getting to a subjectively decent rank (emerald 3+), especially to a semi-decent player isn't all that much of a challenge if you put your game face on and you don't lose too much against lower-skilled players.
>A meta can be short lived or a year's staple depending on how the developers feel about it. This can become frustrating when certain operators. guns, or utility get changed.
>Buying anything but the most expensive version of the game costs you in the long run. Operators can become expensive unless you play frequently and spend all your play-to-earn currency to buy them as opposed to cosmetics. Owning all of the operators in not a must but owning them allows you to learn to play your preferred roles in different ways.

!-!-! DISCLAIMER !-!-!
This was written by a 1.1 lifetime KD player who only plays off and on. Please don't take my word as gospel.

Fun game to play with a friend but felt awfully short and a little gritty considering its MSRP. Perfect pickup on sale to save for a rainy day when theres nothing to do.

This game is down right fun for the whole family

Great game if you like some combat filled story. Voice acting and facial animations show the games age, but it is nowhere near as bad as Mass Effect. If you plan to play more than once, be prepared for an abrupt difficulty decline. Overall 8/10, would recommend if you're into adventure games or story based experience games.

The storytelling is great, the gunplay is satisfying, and the "with friends" experience is fun and rewarding. The game is not without it problems though. Wonky dialogue, grindy gameplay, and now cheaters. Dialogue aside, the grind is what you're here for (Destiny is a looter first and shooter second, afterall) and the cheaters only really become a problem in pinnacle PvP (Competitive and Trials). Overall a great game to try IF you don't mind buying the expansions and are willing to grind to the top.

Great atmosphere but extremely short. The substance of the game is emotional, thought-provoking, and tense yet enjoyable. If you like games like Firewatch you'll love this. If not, maybe wait for a sale till you give it a try.