Here’s when you can play Destiny’s first expansion

If I have to be honest, Destiny has been a massive let down for me. I’ve grown bored of Bungie’s MMO-like shooter very quickly, and I know I’m not the only one. But that doesn’t mean no one is playing Destiny. In fact, a lot of people still are – who are all looking forward to the first expansion which now has a release date.

Destiny’s first DLC expansion, The Dark Below, will launch on December 9th across all four platforms. The expansion, aside from fixing a few issues, will bring new story content, more co-op missions, new weapons and more. You can check out the full list from Acitivison below.

• New weapons, armor, and gear to earn, including Legendary and Exotic items
• Light Level cap raised to 32 and five additional Bounty slots added
• New story quests and missions–after years hiding amongst the Hive shadows, a new character, Eris, has come forth bearing an ominous warning: The Hive seek to summon a god, Crota, to destroy the Earth. Find Eris in the Tower to take on special quests that include three new missions where you will increase your Light and earn new rewards
• New cooperative Strike, The Will of Crota, pits you and your Fireteam against Omnigul as she works to expand the Hive army at the command of her master, Crota
• Three new competitive multiplayer arenas
• Pantheon–set deep within the Black Garden in an ancient Vex temple that features Vex-designed landscapes and tight corridors
• Skyshock–an old interplanetary defense array that offers both vehicle and infantry engagements
• The Cauldron–an abandoned Hive ritual site that offers close-quarter combat
• New six-player Raid, Crota’s End, set deep within the depths of the Hellmouth
• PlayStation platforms will also get access to an exclusive cooperative Strike, The Undying Mind, and more (timed exclusive until at least Fall 2015)

The Dark Below is the first of two expansions included in the Destiny Season Pass, with the second launching sometime next year. The Season Pass will set you back $35, while buying The Dark Below outside of it will cost $20. The Expansion pass was included with non-vanilla versions of the game.

Bungie has been gathering a lot of information since launch, and hope that The Dark Below will address some of the major gameplay issues players have with their online shooter. Bungie president Harold Ryan is confident that this expansion will transform some key aspects to Destiny’s core gameplay.

“Destiny was created as a living universe, which has allowed us to improve the experience post launch in real-time. It also gives us insight into the things players are looking for in new content. We’ve seen from feedback that people want new activities, gear and weapons, and of course the immensely popular Raid. The community helps shape our development decisions and that’s really important to us.”

Now that may sound great, but I still have hardly any desire to go back. For those still playing Destiny it certainly sounds like an expansion worth the asking price, but I’ll have to wait and see whether some of the changes warrant a return trip.

Last Updated: October 29, 2014