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Destiny Private Matches Opening Tomorrow
A mistaken email from a third-party representative for Activision has revealed that Destiny’s private match functionality is going live a week ahead of Rise of Iron’s launch. While the press release was sent in error ahead of a planned announcement tomorrow, the email appears to be official, and comes from a source that has sent official Destiny-related details in the past.
If the press release is to be believed, and there’s little reason to doubt it, the full private match functionality will be available on Tuesday, September 13, possibly as early as 11 a.m. Pacific time, when the email was originally planned for release.
Private matches are supported on both PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, but not on older consoles. With the new functionality, players can choose between Destiny’s many competitive game modes and play on any of the available game maps. For the first time, private matches mean that Destiny will be a viable option for tournament play, as well as opening up the possibility of a professional Destiny gaming scene. For the average player, it means you can pick and choose the style of play you want and play exclusively with your friends.
We’ve got extensive details about private matches and how they work in our in-depth write-up from last month’s cover story.
We reached out to Activision for an official comment on the press release, but the publisher offered no further details or confirmation at this time.
Our Take
Email leaks are a fact of life, but the presence of this info a day early does nothing to diminish my enthusiasm for the announcement. Private matches have been a long time coming for Destiny, and allowing players to explore the functionality a week ahead of the expansion's launch is a great way to build excitement. I’m very eager to see all the variant game modes that players concoct over the coming days.
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