Everything You Need to Know About Destiny's Major Patch

To call Destiny's upcoming expansion huge would be an understatement.

The Taken King is retooling so many of the shooter's systems, and changing so many things about the game we've come to know, that we can safely call it massive. Destiny is becoming a different beast entirely.

Next week, to lay the foundation for the expansion, Bungie is releasing Destiny's biggest patch. And there's a lot to take in, from minor changes to sweeping transformations. Some of them are tweaks to the user interface. Others alter the way we track objectives. A much-maligned character stat is getting axed in favor of a more user-friendly approach.

So in preparation for The Taken King expansion releasing Sept. 15, we've outlined some of the major differences between Destiny's first year, and Destiny as it will exist after Patch 2.0 on September 8. In the video below, we've also outlined a few things you can do to get ready for the expansion's launch.

New Experience System

Destiny's Light rating was one of the main barriers to many players. In the game's first year, the stat was an intrinsic property for certain pieces of armor, and finding specific items was the only way to reach higher character levels. Because of this, jumping from one level to the next could be a slog if you didn't know exactly what to be working toward.

But with the new patch, Bungie is completely retooling how Light works. Instead of dictating which pieces of armor you pursue, Light is now an average of your overall attack power and defense rating. It's nowjust an indicator of how good your inventory is, and doesn't create any barriers on your search for gear. Your character level, on the other hand, is now dictated by experience. This means you can play however you want, and still rank up to the 34 level cap (or 40, when The Taken King goes live).

For a more in-depth look at this new mechanic, watch the video below.

Armsday Events

Much like weekly cooperative strikes, or the mysterious merchant Xur who appears every weekend, Armsday quests are scheduled events aimed at keeping dedicated Destiny players coming back every Wednesday. Essentially, the gunsmith Banshee-44 will lend weapons to you. By completing specific challenges attached to each weapon, you'll increase your reputation rating with the gunsmith, thereby unlocking better weapons, and granting access to Foundry Orders. These ensure you'll have a decent weapon waiting for you during the subsequent week's Armsday event.

Bungie is kicking this mechanic off early, so as of September. 9, players can beginstart increasing their reputation, and get a head start on progress through The Taken King's new content.

Questification

One of the biggest changes coming to Destiny with The Taken King is what Bungie calls "questification." MMO players should feel more at home after the expansion, as more characters will grant quests, and they'll be easier to track. In Destiny's first year, story missions and strikes were only outlined in the Director view, when looking at planetary maps from orbit. But now, simply bringing up your Ghost's scanner will show which quests you have active, and where they can be completed.

Next week's patch will begin this process. New quests will pop up once The Taken King launches, but Patch 2.0 will give players a preview of this update to mission structure. The Quest Log tab shows which quest chains are active, what faction or character they were granted by, and what rewards to expect upon completion.

Bounties

As of now, we have room for 10 active bounties at once. Following Patch 2.0, however, we'll have space for 16. This means those frequent visits to the Tower won't be necessary, and you can stay out in the solar system longer, content with the promise of 16 bounties' worth of experience upon return.

In our video on how to prepare for The Taken King, we strongly encourage you to have completed bounties ready when the expansion launches. This guarantees huge amounts of experience right off the bat, granting access to higher-level gear from the outset.

New Modes and Maps in PvP

Beginning with patch 2.0 and continuing until The Taken King's launch one week later, every Destiny player will have free access to the expansion's new modes and maps.

The modes include Rift and Mayhem. Rift functions like a neutral capture-the-flag match, in which you have to charge your character in the center of the map, before destroying the enemy team's rift on the opposite side. Mayhem, on the other hand, is more lighthearted--Super abilities recharge at a much faster rate. You'll see a plethora of Golden Gun kills, Titans smashing into the ground left and right, and Warlocks hurling explosive bolts of Void energy through the air.

One note: these modes, as well as the eight new PvP maps, are only free for one week. Once The Taken King launches, you'll have to pay for them.

So there you have it: Destiny is undergoing some major changes, and veteran players will have a lot to get used to when Patch 2.0 launches. We've had hands-on time with the new patch, so come back to GameSpotfor our impressions on Sept. 8.