November 30, 2023 – Bungie has now removed the Destiny 2 Starter Pack from sale. Original story follows.
A new Destiny 2 Starter Pack is now available, pitched as a way for new players or those returning to the Bungie looter shooter to get up to speed. However, the bundle’s price has caused outrage among the FPS game’s community, with one of its most prominent YouTubers and Twitch streamers, Stefan ‘Datto’ Jonke, calling it “tone-deaf” in an uncharacteristically angry statement. Following the relatively positive reception to the Destiny 2 The Final Shape delay, he slams the new package as “truly baffling.”
As Destiny 2 Season of the Wish begins, Bungie has launched a DLC package on Steam and Epic that’s aimed at new players. Called the Destiny 2 Starter Pack, the bundle includes three of the most notable Exotic weapons to grace the halls of the FPS game, along with an Exotic ship, Sparrow, and Ghost shell, and a handful of currencies to help you upgrade your early gear. It’s a nice selection, but the high price point of $14.99 / £12.99 is causing frustration.
Datto, one of the most long-standing faces in the Destiny community, says the Starter Pack “would be great for new players, if it didn’t cost 15 goddamn dollars.” His complaint, which is reflected both in the comments and across community pages such as the Destiny Reddit, is very much with the price. You can listen to his two-minute rant in the video below, starting at the 18:36 mark.
Datto notes that the weapons are not currently meta-defining, and that even if Sleeper Sim always has the potential to rejoin the ranks of the best Destiny 2 Exotics, “the thing is years old already and at this point, give the new players the damn weapon, I don’t care.
“What I care about is that there is constant feedback about the barrier to entry for Destiny,” he continues, “that expansions outside of sale times are far too expensive to justify buying and that the game needs new blood, new players to help sustain it, and we are out here trying to nickel and dime these poor blueberries before they’ve even started playing the goddamn game.”
It’s rare to hear Datto raise his voice in such a way – indeed, one of the video’s top comments remarks, “Datto yelling angrily is like hearing the nice teacher yelling for the first time.” Other comments thank him for voicing his concerns, adding “That needed to be said, and well-said it was. Thanks Datto.”
Datto notes that the pack “would be amazing for brand new players if it was free,” and I agree. He even suggests that it could be bundled in with expansions, giving players a bonus incentive to help you catch up if you’re grabbing one of the older pieces of DLC such as The Witch Queen or Lightfall in light of the delay to the Destiny 2 The Final Shape release date.
In closing, Datto expresses his frustration with the decision. “Who in the f*** thought this would bring any good publicity to the game? This does not build goodwill. This does not build faith. This reads horribly. How much more tone deaf can you possibly get? It is truly baffling how things like this end up finding the light of goddamn day. Unbelievable. That’s this stupid Starter Pack, for 15 stupid goddamn dollars.”
The news wraps around to a video from Datto made eight years ago, where he says (at the 2:14 mark in the video below), “I think Bungie is smart enough to realize that selling guns or armor or materials is a bad idea, and if that ever does happen, you, the community, will have my full rage. I promise you that.”
Comparisons are also easy to draw to past bundles such as the Destiny 2 Forsaken Pack from 2018, which includes the Shattered Throne dungeon, the Last Wish raid, and a total of 20 Exotic weapons. It’s priced at $19.99 / £16.99, though is currently on sale for $4.99 / £4.24 at the time of writing.
As someone who’s long been off-again and on-again with Destiny and Destiny 2, I have to agree with the sentiment expressed by Datto and the community. Even as someone who loves the game, getting back in always feels like having to climb a wall of figuring out what I need to buy before I can even start playing. Bundles like this confuse the matter at best, and feel like a trap for newcomers at worst.
Update – November 30: Bungie has now removed the Destiny 2 Starter Pack from sale on both Steam and the Epic Games store.
If you are returning to the Tower, however, be sure to browse the best Destiny 2 builds to see what’s good in Season of the Wish. If you’re looking to explore the stars even further, here’s the best space games on PC in 2023.
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