This week, Trials of Osiris returned to Destiny 2 and the matchmap Solitude and the weapon Unwavering Duty were the main features of the event. The competitive event of the weekend gave the players of the game another chance to show off their skills; however, the reaction of the community was somewhat mixed, with some of the players being very critical about the map choice and the reward distribution.
The Destiny 2 official Twitter account while announcing the return of Trials of Osiris said that the competition for the week is the map Solitude and the weapon Unwavering Duty is the reward for the winner. For those not in the know, Trials of Osiris is a highly exclusive PvP activity in Destiny 2 where the players must compete in a team of three members, going through elimination-style matches in a race to get a ‘Flawless’ run, meaning winning seven matches without losing any.
The community reaction to this week’s Trials announcement has been… let’s just say it has been complicated. A lot of players the first thing they did was to mention that there is no Everburning Glitz as the featured weapon for the week. User MannyG93YT wrote “Another week without Everburning Glitz as the featured weapon” and CPT_STORM commented: “Everburning glitz drops very rarely in this pool. Guess I will just have to wait for next week.” It seems the weapon reward system is a big issue among the hardcore Trials believers.
Criticism of map selection has taken a similar route. Several players are questioning the rationale behind Solitude still being in the rotation. User ryanwp96 asked: “Why is this map still in the game?” and CarlosXRDX just stated: “Change the map.” AquaNinjaaa also expressed his dissatisfaction over Solitude’s selection by saying: “What a map choice after a good map selection last week. What happened to that ‘momentum’ you guys talk about???”.
The discussion around Trials is not only about the current state of the game but over Destiny 2 as a whole. User Scott3480216471 described the feelings of some players who are no longer active in the game: “Before edge of fate you couldn’t get me off destiny. Now it’s the opposite I haven’t played in months. Is it still pointless to go flawless with 90 percent of the game sunset?” This comment brings up the not-so-new topic of viability of content and the reward’s meaningfulness in Destiny 2’s constantly changing landscape.
The critique over the reward structure was not limited to just arsenal availability. User like_bungie further went and challenged the very structure itself, asking “Please tell me, what is the prize for going undefeated for 7 times? Even if I work hard it is still not as big as the T5 rewards given by 450 strength and higher. They don’t even need to go to the lighthouse. There is no reward temptation at all. It is a terrible trial reward!!!” This shows that a section of players thinks that the current Trials system is unbalanced in terms of effort and reward.
At the same time, CalicoFlo was on the asking the developers to make it easier for players to participate saying “Remove trio requirement for trials guilding. Its holding me back. Nobody i know still plays and is just a stupid requirement” – indicating that there are probably solo or duo players that want to experience the Trials content completely but are facing hurdles.
However, the dialogue was not all negative. There were some players who cautiously optimistic with their comments. KingOryxIF said, “Well here is hoping I can get a kinetic tremors roll” whereas banks_ball97137 expressed excitement for prospective events with “Double Osiris drops for Halloween week”. Focus_On_Truth even asked for build advice, saying “I need a build for trials. Please DM me some loadouts to try!” that indicates criticisms have not silenced player engagement with the mode.
To everyone’s surprise, the Trials announcement led to comparisons with other games, as CameronBro200 proclaimed “Arc raiders better than destiny and marathon” while CrucibleSucks simply shared “Arc raiders for me” – implying that some players might be checking out other options aside from Destiny 2’s offerings.
Bungie did clarify the situation regarding the weapons availability, with the official Destiny 2 account replying to KingOryxIF that Everburning Glitz “It’s still in the loot pool, but it’s not featured this week as an additional drop.” This means that even if certain weapons might not necessarily be marked as rewards, they can still be obtained through ‘normal’ participation in.matches.
The mixed responses to this week’s Trials are yet another example of the balancing problem that Bungie has to deal with, in terms of keeping the competitive community engaged with Destiny 2. Taking into account map preferences, rotating prize weapons, and more general concerns over gameplay systems, the developers have been trying to maintain a delicate balance between player expectations and trying to offer a fresh experience week by week.
Trials of Osiris will be running through the weekend and it will be interesting to see if the players will find Solitude and Unwavering Duty a good enough reason for competitive play or if the community complaints about rewards and map selection are going to be the decisive factors in keeping the numbers low. The ongoing player/developer dialogue suggests that Trials is still a hot topic among Destiny 2’s PvP community, although the opinions on its current setup vary tremendously across the player base. PlayStation and Xbox players continue to engage with the game’s content.
