Since initially releasing in the fall of 2017, the folks at Bungie have provided a lot of Destiny 2 content. The game is now in its 20th season and has released several major expansions so far, along with a couple of DLCs.
That’s a lot of content to keep track of, especially with the team changing which content is currently available. And with each year bringing new expansions, along with multiple seasons of content, there’s a lot to follow.
For those looking to trace back the short but deep history of Destiny 2′s paid expansion, we’ve put them in chronological order for you.
Curse of Osiris, December 2017
The first paid, major expansion for Destiny 2 was Curse of Osiris. This expansion was released in December 2017 and introduced the destination of planet Mercury, where the Guardian would have to rescue Osiris from the Vex “in order to avert a dark future.” The story missions pit the Guardian against a series of challenging Vex enemies and eventually the final boss in Panoptes, Infinite Mind.
Curse of Osiris also introduced two new strikes that took place in Mercury: A Garden World and A Tree of Probabilities, both in the procedurally generated Infinite Forest. The expansions also introduced the first of a new raid activity on The Leviathan called Raid Lairs, with Eater of Worlds.
Warmind, May 2018
Warmind is Destiny 2′s second major expansion after Curse of Osiris and the last one of Year One. Warmind added Mars to Destiny 2, via a region called Hellas Basin. On this destination, Guardians had to contend with an awakened Hive army and their worm god Xol, as well as the Warmind Rasputin.
Warmind saw the introduction of a new mode that took place on Mars, Escalation Protocol, a wave-based public event that is reminiscent of horde modes from other games. Warmind also introduced the second and final Raid Lair, Spire of Stars. Additionally, the Valor and Glory ranking systems for PvP players were introduced.
Forsaken, September 2018
Forsaken, the third major expansion and what would be the first of larger yearly expansions for the game going forward, kicked off Year Two. Forsaken introduced two new destinations in The Reef: Dreaming City and Tangled Shore. Forsaken’s lengthy campaign takes place across the new locations and introduced a new enemy in the Scorn, a corrupted, undead version of the Fallen. Guardians are tasked with hunting down the eight Scorn Barons, and these missions can be done in any order.
Forsaken was seen as the biggest change to Destiny 2 since the game came out. They added a new weapon type in the bow, a different super to each Guardian subclass (nine total), four strikes, a new raid in Last Wish, the PvPvE mode Gambit, a new Crucible mode called Breakthrough, and the first dungeon (shorter but still challenging raid for three players) in The Shattered Throne. Forsaken also saw the introduction of official seasonal content, which would forever change how Bungie released new Destiny 2 content.
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Shadowkeep, October 2019
Shadowkeep is Destiny 2′s fourth expansion, their second massive yearly expansion, and Bungie’s first after publicly splitting with Activision Blizzard. Shadowkeep reintroduces the Moon as a new destination, bringing back the iconic location from the first game. The story of Shadowkeep sees the Darkness resurrect numerous foes from the past, known as Nightmares, and forces the Guardians to work with Eris Morn to venture deep under the Moon’s surface to face this new evil.
Shadowkeep introduced two new strikes in The Festering Core and The Scarlet Keep, as well as a new raid in Garden of Salvation, and a new dungeon in Pit of Heresy. Players could also complete a new PvE activity in Nightmare Hunts after completing the Shadowkeep main story. Shadowkeep saw the introduction of the Armor 2.0 system, which drastically changed how armor rolled out and could be modified.
Beyond Light, November 2020
Beyond Light was Destiny 2′s fifth expansion. This DLC introduced the new destination of Europa, the icy moon of the planet Jupiter. Guardians first rescue a former foe in Variks, the Loyal from Eramis, the Kell of Darkness. Eramis uses the power of the Darkness manifested in a new power subclass called Stasis, and the Guardian must take on the Darkness themselves to stop her.
Described by Bungie themselves as the beginning of a “new era” of Destiny 2, Beyond Light saw the introduction of the free-to-play version of the game New Light. Additionally, Beyond Light saw Bungie vault a huge portion of Destiny 2′s content, since the game had gotten too large, and the team wanted to remaster this content and reintroduce it gradually over time. Titan, Io, Mars, Mercury, and the Leviathan areas were all vaulted, as well as the content and missions directly associated with these destinations.
As for Beyond Light itself, the expansion introduced two new strikes in The Disgraced and The Glassway, as well as a new raid in Deep Stone Crypt. Guardians could now modify their Ghost shells in the same manner as they could with their armor, as part of the Armor 2.0 update. The original Gambit was removed, with Gambit Prime being renamed to just Gambit. Lastly, the Cosmodrome from the original Destiny was reintroduced as a destination.
Bungie 30th Anniversary event
Released in December 2021, Bungie’s 30th Anniversary event was a paid DLC that also added some content for free players, such as the Dares of Eternity six-player activity. It also added several new weapons inspired by previous Bungie titles, the Grasp of Avarice Dungeon, and plenty of new cosmetics.
The Witch Queen, February 2022
The Witch Queen was possibly Destiny 2’s best DLC yet.
Savathûn, the Hive god of cunning, has stolen the Light to create Hive Guardians and it’s up to Guardians to investigate how. With a new destination, Savathûn‘s Throne World, a new raid, two new Strikes, and Destiny 2’s best campaign yet with a new Legendary difficulty, The Witch Queen is a true game-changer.
The 2022 expansion also added a rework of all Void subclasses to function the same way as Stasis, offering Fragments and Aspects to help customize the player experience. Throughout the year, Bungie added a rework for all existing subclasses, deepening the player experience like never before.
Lightfall, February 2023
Lightfall was released at the end of February 2023, upping the stakes in every way possible by having the Destiny story’s big bad finally arrive.
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The Witness, who appeared as the main driving force behind all adversaries in the previous expansion, continues to threaten humanity in a chase for an important artifact called The Veil.
Lightfall featured a new campaign set on a neon-soaked Neptune metropolis called Neomuna and also introduced the second Darkness power, Strand, which ended up being the focal point and highlight of the whole expansion.
The expansion also featured a new raid, Root of Nightmares, along with a slew of new quality-of-life changes, like an update to buildcrafting, an all-new loadout system, a commendations system, and Guardian Ranks.
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The Lightfall story will continue throughout 2023 in seasonal content.
The Final Shape, 2024 (TBA)
Due to launch sometime in 2024, Bungie has revealed The Final Shape as the next Destiny 2 expansion after Lightfall. “The Light and Darkness saga will come to a dramatic conclusion” in both Lightfall and The Final Shape, but “Destiny 2 will continue beyond,” Bungie teased in August 2021.
The Final Shape will be revealed during a livestream event on Aug. 22, 2023, and will feature the return of Cayde-6.
