Bungie's Destiny won't feature animal mounts

Destiny, the all-new multiplatform game from Halo creator Bungie, will not feature animal mounts, the studio has revealed.

"We considered animal mounts, but the weight-load of the Titan’s heavy armor kept breaking their backs, and we knew that PETA would go absolutely berserk," Bungie said as part of its latest Weekly Update feature.

PETA is the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. The organization has previously spoken out about the treatment of animals in video games by creating Flash game parodies of titles like Super Meat Boy, Pokemon, and Mario.

Animal mounts are not completely foreign to sci-fi experiences, as Star Wars fans will undoubtedly recall that franchise's extended use of such mounts. Like Halo before it, however, Destiny players can expect to find a host of standard vehicles to ride and attack enemies from.

Also in the Bungie Weekly Update post, the studio said Destiny--like many other titles before it--will have second-screen functionality available to players. The Companion, as Bungie calls it, will eventually be accessible through the official Bungie Mobile App, available today on iOS and Android.

Bungie did not provide any details regarding what kinds of experiences Destiny players will find through The Companion. Second-screen experiences are becoming more and more commonplace and typically afford users a variety of features, including inventory management or the ability to learn more about the virtual world around them.

Destiny launches for Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, and PlayStation 4 on September 9. A beta for the game will be available this summer first on PlayStation platforms. Preordering the game will guarantee you access to the pre-release trial period.