Bungie Kept Its Own Staff in the Dark as Destiny 2 Met Its End

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Most Bungie employees were surprised by the public announcement that active development on Destiny 2 was ending. While the decision was made earlier in 2026, the majority of staff continued working on future content, including a planned expansion called The Shattered Cycle, which was ultimately canceled. Bungie hasn’t confirmed exactly how many employees learned about the decision at the same time as the public.

Very few people knew about the news in advance – mainly the teams working on the final update and those transferred to the ‘Marathon’ project. These individuals apparently urged leaders to share the information with more of the studio, but it wasn’t done before the public announcement.

On May 21, 2026, Bungie announced that the final major update for Destiny 2, called Monument of Triumph, will launch on June 9, 2026. Players will still be able to play Destiny 2 after that date, much like the original Destiny is still available now.

The Destiny 2 development team announced that after twelve years of creating the game with its players, they’ll be moving on after the release of The Final Shape. They expressed immense gratitude for the journey, highlighting the highs and lows they experienced together. While they remain passionate about Destiny, they feel it’s the right time for both the game and their team to evolve beyond the current iteration of Destiny 2.

Bungie is planning significant layoffs as part of a company restructuring. Employees directly asked about job cuts during a meeting following the announcement, but company leaders didn’t offer a straightforward response. The exact number of positions being eliminated hasn’t been revealed.

Just weeks before a recent announcement, Sony revealed a $765 million loss related to Bungie, the game developer it purchased for $3.6 billion in 2022, due to weaker-than-expected performance. As of March 24, 2026, Bungie’s new game, Marathon – a player-versus-player extraction shooter – had sold an estimated 1.2 million copies.

After the announcement, Destiny 2 players flooded the Steam page for the game Marathon with negative reviews, quickly lowering its overall rating from 86% to 77% in just three days. Marathon fans then countered by posting over 500 positive reviews.

Sony is increasing its support for the Marathon game, and most of the team working on Destiny 2 will now focus on it. While Marathon isn’t intended to immediately take over Destiny’s role as a major source of ongoing revenue, updates to both its player-versus-environment and player-versus-player modes should attract more players. Currently, Bungie isn’t working on any other games, and ideas for new projects – including additional Destiny games like Destiny 3 – haven’t been given the green light.

On June 9th, all players will be able to access the Monument of Triumph, which Bungie is releasing to celebrate the game’s history since it first launched. With its release, Legendary Marks will also return, earned by completing various in-game challenges (Triumphs). These marks can be redeemed for free armor decorations, accessories, and weapon blueprints. Players who complete a large number of challenges will also unlock a special title and an exclusive set of armor decorations.

Based on player feedback, the Director is back as the main hub for all activities. You can still access Portal activities through nodes at the bottom of the Director. Bungie wants players to be able to quickly start playing and earn good rewards without having to add extra challenges. Each type of Portal activity—like Solo, Fireteam, Arena, Pinnacle, Crucible, and Gambit Ops—will now offer its own unique set of weapon rewards.

Okay, so Pantheon 2.0 is officially here to stay, which is awesome! On June 9th, the first set of bosses drops in two different activities, each with its own unique group of enemies to fight. Then, on June 13th, all the bosses get rolled into one big activity Bungie’s calling the Gauntlet. After that, starting June 16th, they’re going to rotate which bosses are available each week, so we can keep earning rewards by taking on different challenges. Basically, it’s a constant stream of boss fights!

We’ve updated all weapons and armor from raids and dungeons to meet current game standards, ensuring they’re all balanced and include the latest set bonuses and perks. Players will also be able to upgrade crafted weapons all the way from Tier 1 to Tier 5. We’re bringing back weekly Featured Raids and Dungeons with improved rewards. Weapons and armor found at various destinations have also been updated, and some locations will now feature ‘Distortions’ – new challenges that offer unique rewards on top of the usual loot.

Destiny 2 is adding three new ways to play in the Crucible. Arena focuses on fast-paced gunfights and offers a classic Bungie PvP experience, and it’s now available in regular playlists. Glass Cannon and Software are exclusive to private matches: Glass Cannon brings back the balancing style of the original Destiny, and Software is a chaotic, third-person mode where you only use abilities. Iron Banner will happen every four weeks, and Trials of Osiris will be available on weekends when Iron Banner isn’t running. Both of these events will offer tiered loot and new armor to earn.

Destiny 2’s next update brings exciting changes! Players can now use a new vehicle called the Cabal Walker, explore a brand-new map, and enjoy battles with a mix of different vehicles to choose from. The Gambit game mode is getting a major overhaul, becoming an ‘Ops’ category with new armor that offers special bonuses, and classic Gambit weapons will return as tiered gear with improved perks. All Competitive Crucible weapons are also becoming tiered, and a special armor set has been added to reward players for competing.

The challenges Onslaught, Contest of Elders, and The Coil have all been adjusted to be more balanced and shorter. They now start easier and gradually become more difficult. Onslaught now focuses on building defenses over time – you won’t start with revive tokens, but you’ll earn more scrap. Bungie has also confirmed that achieving the highest possible defense level, often called ‘Shaxxmaxxing,’ is possible again, and some weapons can only be earned by playing Onslaught. Contest of Elders has also been streamlined, reduced from four laps to just three.

Destiny 2 is getting three new abilities: Crackshot for Solar Hunters, Soul Siphon for Void Warlocks, and Shieldburst for Solar Titans. Void Hunters will also gain a new melee attack called Phantom Surge. All classes will receive new grenades, including the Strand Slicewire Grenade and the Stasis Shatter Grenade. Several class abilities are also being updated – Mindspun Invocation will now work differently with the Threadling Grenade, the Ward of Dawn ability is getting a complete overhaul, and Trapper’s Ambush will have new features.

All Exotic armor you’ve earned since the release of The Edge of Fate will be automatically improved to the highest stat levels. Bungie has hinted that Warlocks might soon be able to detonate two Nova Bombs close together for a bigger blast – more details will be shared in an upcoming Destiny update. Plus, many Exotic weapons are getting adjustments, and most will receive Catalysts to unlock further upgrades.

We’re retiring some seasonal events like Festival of the Lost, The Dawning, Guardian Games, and Solstice. You’ll still be able to earn the weapons from these events by getting engrams from the Monument of Triumph vendor. Previously exclusive armor ornaments will be available in two ways: you can exchange Bright Dust for them directly, or use a new system where you spend an Engram and some Bright Dust to guarantee you get an item from the category you want, without getting duplicates. Also, Bright Dust will now refresh daily instead of weekly.

The rewards available through the Monument of Triumph activity were originally designed for the Shadow and Order update. Players can earn a new Exotic Hand Cannon, several armor ornament sets, ghosts, shaders, and other cosmetic items. Starting June 9th, players will be able to use standard, uncommon, rare, and legendary armor ornaments on their Exotic armor, changing its appearance in all PvE activities – Bungie is calling this a true Exotic armor customization system.

On June 9th, everything you need for Destiny 2 will be available in one package called Destiny 2: The Collection. This includes all previous campaigns, access to Dungeons, the 30th Anniversary Pack, and more. Plus, starting in June, you’ll be able to buy individual expansions and content packs at permanently lower prices.

Sparrow Racing League is back for good! It’ll feature classic tracks from the original Destiny, plus a brand new racing location. You can earn a special set of weapons by racing, and familiar armor sets are returning with a new perk. There will also be new cosmetic items, like horns, to collect. Bungie will share all the details about the updated Sparrow Racing League before it launches.

Bungie will be posting regular updates called ‘This Week in Destiny’ and ‘Developer Insight’ articles until the June 9th launch of the new content. These updates will cover everything from how the game’s menu works (the Director) to changes in activities, the return of Sparrow Racing League, weapons, raids, dungeons, armor, and player abilities. Bungie promises to share more news about Destiny as soon as it’s available. After June 9th, the weekly blog posts will stop, but Bungie will continue to communicate with players through their website, social media, and Discord.

Wow, the response to the idea of Destiny 3 has been insane! A petition asking Sony to make it happen went viral, racking up over 200,000 signatures in just a few days, and it’s still climbing as we speak. It’s awesome to see so many people wanting a sequel!

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2026-05-27 21:18