Today’s August showcase of Destiny 2 revealed more about Season 18, various new items that players can look forward to, and much of what the Lightfall expansion really represents both in terms of plot and gameplay. In the past, Bungie has stated that it is working on a completely new damage element that will be introduced in the future, but these plans changed at some point during development, and the Witch Queen became the messenger of Subclass 3.0 updates, rather than introducing something completely new. However, Lightfall will appear in 2023, and with it, Destiny 2 fans will be able to master the powers of the new Strand subclass.
The Strand subclasses are associated with movement, and each class gets access to its own set of abilities, including completely new Aspects, Fragments, and Superpowers. This is a great juxtaposition to Stasis, which instead slows down and freezes others in place. Like the well-established identity of the Darkness subclasses in Destiny 2, the reworking of the Void and Sun subclasses was also about redefining the themes that made them what they were and what they are now. With Season of Plunder, Arc gets a similar 3.0 update that helped improve Void and Solar, and the way its game cycle works can make it the perfect combination of Light and Darkness subclasses.
Why Destiny 2’s Arc 3.0 is a Successful Reworking
Like the recently announced Strand, Arc 3.0 is about moving and perfecting a style of play that promotes players’ awareness of what surrounds them. The Arc subclasses don’t have fancy hooks for this, but they use the sheer force and speed of lightning to allow the Guardians to jump right into the action. This is something that has not been present in the basic Arc subclasses in Destiny 2 so far, but the new tools gained from Aspects and Fragments can help players realize a strong fantasy of rushing into battle and emerging victorious.
The facelift Arc subclasses obtained with the Destiny 2 heist season are great because of the tools that help players close the gap, electrocute their enemies and stay alive at the same time. Compared to the Light subclasses that have already been redesigned, Arc stands out because it combines what they have to achieve individually, which is a first for this element, which was once the worst of the three, with the exception of Titans using Thundercrash. . Void subclasses are more concerned with crowd control and self-preservation through means such as Devour, super shields and invisibility, whereas Solar subclasses are designed for healing and explosions.
Arc 3.0 combines these gameplay elements into one subclass, which still remains independent, with its own personality. However, it combines everything there is to love about the Light and Dark subclasses, and also offers a glimpse into the future, showing what a new focus on movement can do when Lightfall’s Strand is released next year. This healthy mix of game styles and iconic features also makes each class both more defined and more similar to each other: Titans gain access to evasion abilities, Hunters work their way through enemies, and Warlocks find a middle ground.
Taking Destiny 2 subclasses of Light with the updated 3.0 system means that players can now fully explore any build option they want with every element without feeling outdated. Hunters in Destiny 2 have received a new superpower that fills the large power vacuum created by the Rejected, warlocks get a built-in exotic item in their abilities, and Titans get a new charged melee that devastates enemies, which creates maximum variety. All in all, pushing Arc 3.0 last was probably the best decision Bungie could have made, and the once shallow element can now find time to shine.
Destiny 2 is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.
