Destiny: Rising has exceeded my expectations of what I thought the game was going to be, and at its core, it is the Destiny console experience at the touch of your phone.
When I first saw the ads for this game a month ago, I was skeptical.
It’s not like we haven’t seen First-Person Shooters on mobile before; we have games like Call of Duty and PUBG on mobile. However, the concept and gameplay of Destiny are so different from those of other games that it’s hard to grasp the game being similar on mobile.
Though I was severely proven wrong by NetEase.
*Spoilers Ahead*
Story
Before you think it’s a one-to-one, beat-for-beat recreation of Destiny and its story or if it’s Destiny 3, I will tell you right now it’s not.
It is an original story by NetEase Games, set in a new timeline years before Destiny 1 and 2, on a different Earth with the same enemies but different allies, excluding allies who are from the main series, Ikora Rey.
The main characters and players aren’t guardians, but are called “Lightbearers”, which isn’t necessarily a big change for me personally, just something you get used to when you keep playing.
You start your journey as Wolf, a Lightbearer who was revived by a ghost called Zev, who wants to bring you to the last city under the traveller called Haven, which is the main hub of the game, essentially The Tower from the mainline games.
When you get to Haven, you will meet some NPC allies that will join you throughout the story.
After that, you have a few missions in the prologue that will help you get a handle on the gameplay and mechanics.
Only after completing the prologue do you unlock the main chapters in the story and free roam.
I will say, though, that you will only explore Earth, and for a majority of the campaign, you’re just bouncing between Haven and Jiang Shi Metro, which is the first location you unlock, but you’ll unlock one more location later on (unsure what the other location will be).
Honestly, I’m kind of disappointed that the game doesn’t include any other locations than the main hub and the additional two, but hopefully that can change later on in the future.
Characters
Unlike the main series games, you will not be able to build your own classes of characters; you will be given characters with their own classes and powers.
So, just to get it out of the way, yes, it is a gacha game, but before you dismiss it, it is a gacha game that doesn’t feel like it will drain my wallet or hours.
Buying or grinding to get the characters isn’t the main focus of this game; in fact, they treat it as a side to the main course meal, which is the campaign that follows “Wolf,” your created character who is a human, titan with solar powers.
I was a bit taken aback by the limited character customization because I assumed it’d be the same as the mainline games.
Wolf is human, and you can only choose human as a species, and of course, you can choose between male or female genders with only three voices.
It is understandable, as this is a gacha game, and NetEase wants to focus on the character drawings instead of the custom characters.
You will be able to play as other characters through the campaign as well, when the story needs you to, essentially using it as a way to try the characters out before you buy them.
You can get other characters during chapters 1-2 after meeting another character named Kabr, an Arc Titan.
Kabr is the first character you can get during the prologue.
He is there to introduce you to the gacha system in the bazaar, where you are given free draws to get a few characters just to help you on your way.
A lot of the characters you can get are original characters like Attal, an Arc warlock or Jolder, a void titan.
To me, seeing as they have established what the story is, it is pretty easy to get over the fact that the main three of Zavala, Cayde and Ikora aren’t the main characters we interact with.
Instead, I’m enjoying getting to know this new group of characters, and it's a pretty fun change to have the ability to play as Ikora (though I heavily dislike her grenade launcher and rocket launcher, not my playstyle).
I am really enjoying the playstyle of each character and the archetype of each character, as many of the characters will be a combination of elements.
Gameplay
Alright, now time for the meat and bones.
The only way I can describe the gameplay is that it’s just Destiny.
It plays and feels like Destiny, which to me is amazing.
They were able to adapt the core gameplay of the main games perfectly onto mobile, and NetEase Games was able to implement controller support into Destiny: Rising without any problem.
It works with Xbox and PS5 DualSense controllers.
I’d recommend playing with those controllers if you want that console feel.
Playing with a third-party wireless controller, the layout of the buttons will be different from that of an Xbox or DualSense controller, and for some odd reason (That I can’t explain), it just doesn’t feel right unless it’s either one of those two controllers.
They also allow you to play on PC through emulators, but NetEase suggest using MuMuPlayer as NetEase owns MuMuPlayer.
The mobile controls are the best I have ever played with, super responsive, and the sensitivity just by touch is great.
It does have the same old layout of most mobile games, and something I always dislike is that there is another shooting button on the left side where you are usually moving, but the layout can be edited.
It’s also similar to Destiny within the free roam; again, in the main campaign, you'll bounce between Haven and Jiang Shi Metro, but it allows players to explore this huge map, which includes multiple quests and events that will give you big rewards.
Multiplayer
This game is chock-full of multiplayer modes, with your classic raids known as “Haven Ops”, and an additional five PvE modes.
On top of that, there is your regular PvP mode called Iron Bar (which can only be played from Friday through Monday).
There is a new game mode, called Shifting Gates, which is a PvPvE mode where 6 teams of three compete to collect the most data points.
Lastly, there are three really casual game modes, including fishing, Shadowshaper Duels and the return of Sparrow Racing (a returning limited-time event from Destiny 1).
It’s nice to bring back some old LTEs as permanent modes, specifically Sparrow Racing, which was a mode that didn’t return in Destiny 2.
Now, fans can play Sparrow Racing on Destiny Rising, which will be unlocked during chapter 4-3.
The amount of content that's already available on release is amazing and already caters to Destiny fans who have longed for more than your regular raids and PvP modes.
I genuinely loved the fact that there are so many game modes available at the start, and unlocking them is so easy and doesn’t require much, just go through the story mode.
Destiny: Rising is just a great game all around.
It keeps the main core elements of Destiny, but is still able to flip the franchise on its head and keeps the game engaging.
Though it may be a gacha game, it’s probably one of the best ones out right now.
You get the first/third-person shooter gameplay with the addition of multiple competitive and casual modes that will challenge your character's power.
If you are looking for a new FPS looter shooter to play with a great story or just looking to play Destiny on the go, then playing Destiny: Rising is the game to play.