The dashing Duchess of Destiny 2 did more dramas with that Short Job Trial Basement time for the Contest Mode. There was a month-long window where the event was originally supposed to put its fireteams under the most pressure, with tantalizing rewards as a lure. The reactions have been, well, let’s say mixed.
On the official DestinyTheGame Twitter, the simplest of questions threw things into pandemonium: “How far did your fireteam progress?” Oh boy, opinions they had. The answers ranged from technical faults, scheduling issues, to outright declarations that the game is dead, showcasing a very conflicted community about Destiny 2’s standing.
Some who loved the challenge. ExSaucci added, “perfect IMO” for level of difficulty, who called the “Final Boss” “Absolutely amazing!” Kudos to the “RAD team,” which apparently means Raid and Dungeon team, but honestly thinking about it, Rad Team sounds even cooler. There really were many expressions of joy in successfully clearing and other players enjoying the fierce competition Contest Mode always brings.
On the other hand, here’s what we got. The bug curse was definitely apparent with many attempts;TheAutisto ranted about being on “bugs over and over on hobgoblin” that had cost their team a clear, aptly contrasted by Agile_lion, who said that even when they did clear their Agros was bugged and didn’t count right. The forever-weasel-bug was brought up by xiaaoxo, who said the bug was keeping some players from logging into the game at all. Now, imagine-taking time off work for this and not being able to get past the title screen?? That’s rough.
Then scheduling became the hot-button topic. Quite a few players stated the raid date was switched last-minute and therefore was quite inconvenient for those who had planned around the original time. Skater/James stated that they “couldn’t even take part as it was moved by a week” after having booked time off work specifically for the original dates. Pattawan06 asked Bungie directly to bring back the Contest Mode for another weekend for those who missed out because of the date changes, but skaater responded, “they should but they wont,” in a pretty pessimistic way.
And then are the… let’s call them the disillusioned guys. Several replies were borderline “didn’t even launch the game” or “didn’t even bother attempting.” Voice of Reason (whose username could have been chosen ironically) stated simply, “Didn’t even launch the game,” while tom revealed that “most of my friends have left Destiny 2, so it’s impossible to do the raid anyway.” Katorao became downright dramatic with “Games dead let it go,” with Jason throwing out a rather biting question, “Does anyone actually care anymore?”
That mixture of responses sets a sharp contrast to highlight the ongoing challenges Bungie faces keeping players’ sustained engagement in a game which has been running now for years. Contest Mode Raids are the top level of PVE content in Destiny 2, created for the most hardcore members to thirst for a challenge. Yet endless glitches mar this experience, or scheduling conflicts ensure people don’t actually get to participate in it, and it’s all the community can express through frustration.
Quite interestingly, this single tweet almost perfectly encapsulates every big conversation going on within the Destiny community right now: the appreciative voices for well-done content, angry voices for unwarranted bugs, and concerned voices for how to keep players. Those few who finished it seemed to like The Desert Perpetual Epic Raid, but the overarching circumstances set some pretty daunting hills for the majority of would-be contenders.
As Destiny 2 progresses into the current season and towards potential content, a couple of competing priorities will understandably have to be balanced by Bungie. The hardcore needs chams like Contest Mode, but technical stability and consistent scheduling need to be in place so that anybody stands a chance for those experiences. These are the evergreen player engagement issues as the game ages, with its competitors on the rise.
Meanwhile, the conversation rolls on across social media platforms, with players continuing to share their Contest Mode experiences-wins and frustrations. Whether you got your coveted clear or not, whether stuck in bugs for days, one thing’s clear, the Destiny community remains louder than ever about the game they cherish, and sometimes the passion takes form in opposition.
