Destiny: Rising’s Successful Launch Tells Two Different Tales About Destiny 2

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Recently, NetEase introduced a brand new spin-off titled “Destiny: Rising” within the Destiny series. This game is developed under licenses from Bungie and Sony Interactive Entertainment, offering a free-to-play MMO experience specifically designed for mobile devices. Players can switch between first- and third-person perspectives during gameplay. While not an exact copy of the mainline Destiny games, Destiny: Rising retains many key features from the series’ leading titles, including Raids-like missions, Player vs Player modes, and looter shooter aspects. Notably, some mechanics in this game, such as dual-wielding weapons, are unique and not found in Bungie’s Destiny games.

In just a week since its release, “Destiny: Rising” appears set for major commercial triumphs by NetEase. Before its debut, the game amassed more than 10 million pre-registrations within months. Now, it seems that numerous individuals who registered ahead of time have already downloaded and played it. In fact, as confirmed by NetEase itself, “Destiny: Rising” has emerged as the most downloaded mobile game on Google Play and the App Store in various regions globally. Additionally, the overall feedback towards the game has been quite favorable, with some gamers even claiming that it outperforms “Destiny 2” in certain aspects.

Destiny: Rising Could Give Bungie an Avenue to Boost Destiny 2’s Engagement

The remarkable achievement of Destiny: Rising sheds light on Destiny 2’s current situation and potential strategies for drawing players back to its primary first-person shooter title. Though Destiny 2 is not a forgotten game, it has faced challenges in keeping its player base consistent over the past few years. In April 2025, the game’s simultaneous player count on Steam hit an all-time low, and the latest paid expansion for Destiny 2, The Edge of Fate, did not attract a significant number of new players. Destiny 2 still has a considerable distance to travel before regaining the trust of its lost players, but Bungie could leverage collaborations with Destiny: Rising to reinvigorate interest in their game.

Destiny: Rising Players Could Be Incentivized to Check Out Destiny 2 With a Crossover Event

Over time, Destiny 2 has teamed up with numerous other franchises, including Mass Effect, For Honor, Assassin’s Creed, and Ghostbusters. While these collaborations often don’t result in significant gameplay changes, they have typically sparked a surge of interest for the game. Given this pattern, it seems logical that Bungie might consider incorporating a Destiny: Rising collaboration into Destiny 2 at some point. If Destiny: Rising continues to thrive, a possible crossover event between the two games could tempt some of its players to try out Destiny 2 as well.

Although the storyline of “Destiny: Rising” carries the “Destiny” title, it does not align with the main storyline that forms the overall narrative of the Destiny franchise.

The Success of Destiny: Rising Shows That It May Be Time for Bungie to Make Destiny 3

Despite whether or not Destiny 2 manages to regain its player base, the successful debut of Destiny: Rising implies that a fresh mainline Destiny game could help revitalize the series. In recent years, speculation about a possible Destiny 3 has been prevalent within the broader Destiny 2 community. Some longtime players have expressed reluctance towards this concept due to their fear of losing progress in Destiny 2, but many others are in favor, believing that the Destiny franchise has become less inviting for newcomers as time has passed.

A Destiny 2 Sequel Currently Seems Unlikely, But Plans Could Change in the Future

Currently, it appears that Bungie might not be focusing on a potential sequel to Destiny 2 as of now. Last year, Bloomberg reported that Bungie, which was previously developing the canceled Destiny spin-off titled Payback, is currently working on smaller updates for Destiny 2 instead. Although the possibility of a Destiny 3 seems unlikely at the moment, there’s a chance Bungie might reconsider this decision in the future. If they were to create a new mainline Destiny game that rivals or even surpasses the quality of Destiny: Rising, it could potentially attract more players at launch than any expansion for Destiny 2 ever could.

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2025-09-04 01:37