Opinion - How Destiny’s PvP Converted A Non-Believer

I’ve tried and failed to enjoy PvP for ages. If my friends could spend hour upon hour locked in a Battlefield match, I figured I should at least be able to enjoy a round or two every now and then. I’m not exactly sure why, but it didn’t matter if we won or lost; I just couldn’t squeeze an ounce of enjoyment out of the experience.

The same goes for the classics like Halo; I’ve racked up hours of competitive playtime both on my own and with friends, but secretly hated every moment of it. It’s gotten to the point where I’ll run through the campaign in the latest Call of Duty title, then just let the game rot on my shelf until it becomes forgotten under a layer of dust. Never has news of an included multiplayer mode within any game excited me, which makes it all the more amazing that Destiny’s PvP has been the only thing on my mind for weeks.

Destiny is caught between genres; it plays like an FPS but is built with some heavy MMO-inspired design. Most of Destiny’s story takes place in PvE, which is where I’ve spent the majority of my time in the game. The unique duality of Destiny allows a large amount of overlap between the PvE and PvP, but it’s still entirely possible to play each independently. 

With everything offered to me in PvE, I never had a reason to give Destiny’s PvP mode, Crucible, even a second glance. It wasn’t until discovering Iron Banner that I felt the need to care about Destiny’s PvP. Iron Banner comes around roughly once a month and offers limited run gear to guardians that do well enough in its special Crucible gametype. Winning matches rewards players with Iron Banner reputation, which gradually gives you access to the exclusive gear around only during the event. 

Between Iron Banner and another similarly structured timed PvP event called Trials Of Osiris, I was hooked on PvP. Both are more difficult than traditional Crucible but are rewarding enough to make the struggle worth it. Provided you perform well enough, participation in either of these events guarantees a shiny new piece of gear whereas completing PvE events like a raid leaves you at the mercy of Destiny’s infamous random drop system. PvP events reward and respect both your time and ability, which is a breath of fresh air in the sometimes grind-heavy world of Destiny. 

I’ve played PvP in other games, and have typically been destroyed while doing so, but never before have I come out of a loss as motivated as I have with Destiny. I walked away from my first two encounters in Trials of Osiris without obtaining a single win, but my spirit wasn’t crushed. Instead, I went online and sought some insight into why other players seemed to be doing so much better than me. I changed up my exotics, leveled up different guns, and managed to earn 4 wins in my next Trials attempt.

Unlike other competitive multiplayer games I’ve tried, Destiny manages to make my victory in PvP translate directly over to my usual activities in PvE. The spoils of war in Destiny are more than aesthetic; experience, gear, and weapons earned in Crucible can be used anywhere in the game. Some of my favorite weapons have fallen into my lap because of Crucible, and those are the weapons I then level up and take with me into raids. And after winning a weapon in a PvE raid I can jump right back into Crucible and use it to rack up an even higher K/D. The two modes of gameplay in Destiny build upon each other without any conscious thought from the player and it’s fantastic.  

Gear aside, Crucible matches themselves feel welcoming to the PvP newbie. In basic Crucible, all player levels are equalized, meaning a new player can square off with a max-leveled guardian and stand a fighting chance. A guardian’s super ability may charge more quickly if they preform better, but even a struggling player will be able to hopefully turn the tides with a well-timed super. An early lead is not necessarily a guaranteed victory. Even timed heavy ammo drops are equal opportunity, and can either secure victory or facilitate a comeback depending on how teams take strategic advantage of the situation.

Destiny has allowed me to find a value in PvP combat that I had previously been unable to grasp. For the first time I’m able to walk away from a match feeling like I gained something from the experience. Even when a match goes horribly wrong or I’m denied that rare gear drop I so desperately wanted, Destiny keeps me coming back for more. And while most of my PvP time has been spent in those limited-run events, I’m no longer fervently against the idea of playing a few rounds of regular Crucible after work.

I hope more games follow Destiny's footsteps and learn to bridge the gap between PvE and PvP. Having some level of overlap between the two modes of play, both in terms of gear and lore, opened my mind to an experience I never thought I’d be able to enjoy. Until then, I think this small bit of personal growth will inspire me to give other competitive multiplayer modes a try; The Last of Us Remastered has been sitting neglected on my shelf and I’ve heard great things about its PvP.  

Originally published July 10, 2015.