Christopher Barrett, the previous director of Destiny, made the revelation about the internal design document for the Prison of Elders activity which at the same time implied that the major part of the House of Wolves expansion was done by just five or six developers in three months, with hardly any guidance. The tweet went on to describe the proud achievements of the team, such as the Skolas boss fight, The Reef social space, and the launch of Trials of Osiris, which stirred up nostalgia and debates among the old-timers not only about the novel features but also about the trials and hardships that the game went through.
Well, Barrett made an extensive peek, so to speak, of the very wild internally. He told of the old design document of the Prison of Elders, which was probably the horde mode from the House of Wolves DLC for the first Destiny game, and the real thing was the talk around it rather than the document.
He is to the team “still super proud”. But it is shocking that he says so with “low confidence from the leadership” and “light resources” basically. We are literally talking about a team of just five or six people. And, guess what. They had only three months. Not even three! To make one very big expansion. Insane! Just cannot compare it to today’s situations where game studios are huge and consist of hundreds of people working for years. They produced the fight with Skolas, the entire Reef social space, the introduction of Petra Venj, the ignition of Trials of Osiris from nothing, and the changing of PvP meta. All with a team of fewer than five.
The player audience has mixed feelings and some even asked serious questions. Many refer to “House of Wolves” and later “Warmind” expansions as “goated” which is quite true. Even though they were minor upgrades that came with an expansion pass but they really improved the game at that time and also had so much passion. One player called it “crazy” and wished that the same kind of passion could be seen again. That sentiment was echoed a lot. Players are thanking Barrett and his team outright by saying “the game was so much better when you guys were in charge”.
However, there is another side to this story which is “kinda” sad history lesson. One reply is asking for a proper documentary about how upper management “hindered” the game more than helped it over the last decade. Ouch. It’s quite a different feeling when you just read that the House of Wolves team got little faith from the higher-ups. It makes you wonder what would have been the outcome if they had more time, more people, and more support?
Players really reveal the hidden secrets in the comments. One of them referred to the “never created Reef Raid” which has turned into a part of Destiny mythology. Barrett actually answered! He stated that some of the early geometry from the canceled raid was used for the Vestian Outpost and Lighthouse areas. So, even the failed ones turned out to be the source of inspiration for the succeeding ones. That’s a lovely tale. Another person asked why we are not getting a new PvP mode as big as Trials in the post-House of Wolves period. Barrett’s reply was very direct: “team/studio priorities I guess.” The statement is…Yes! It quite clearly indicates the direction the focus went.
There was even a funny interchange about development time. One person asked if the Rise of Iron expansion had similar restrictions. Barrett’s response was “The team was a bit larger, but if I recall correctly, we had 4-5 months?” So a bit more time, but still, a crazy crunch. It really signifies how these classic pieces of destiny were created under a heavy burden of time and stress.
Arguably there was a mix of feelings from the players and not just pure nostalgia. One response just plainly stated “POE was not fun and was a very simple mode; we had no choice but to go through it to earn gear”. Fair opinion! However, it was drowned by the overwhelming majority of comments saying “POE was a great game mode & missed in D2” or people sharing their favorite memories of defeating Skolas without Gjallarhorn and the first, golden weekend of Trials.
All in all, the tweet and the design document it shared are more than just a blast from the past. They highlight the immense hustle and creativity that can be a part of game development even when the odds are heavily stacked against you. Thus, some periods of Destiny, albeit with weaknesses, are remembered by the community very fondly—there is heart in the products, and you can feel it.
For players, it’s a bittersweet look back to the days when a small, dedicated team could leave a significant mark on their favorite game, and it raises questions about how that team from Bungie managed such feats on platforms like PlayStation and Xbox.
