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Destiny 2 Heresy artwork featuring Guardians fighting against Taken and Dread
Image via Bungie

What does ‘Something strange is near’ mean in Destiny 2?

In this game, there's always something weird just around the corner.

Destiny 2’s year of content post-The Final Shape closes out with a spooky and mysterious Episode called Heresy, and it’s all about the Hive pantheon. The game even tells players that “something strange is near” in the new content, but what does that mean?

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Savathun, Xivu Arath, and Oryx are set to return and shake things up in the final Episode of the year before a new Destiny expansion comes out later in 2025, and the Dreadnought‘s coming with the new Episode, too. Get ready to explore the massive ship’s secrets, fight secret bosses, and get new loot while journeying through the darkened halls within.

Sometimes, Destiny 2’s UI will even begin dropping hints as to when there’s cool stuff to discover, like when the “something strange is near” message pops up on the left side of your screen. Don’t worry, you’re not being watched by evil (well… maybe, maybe not), as there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation for it.

Here’s everything we know about Destiny 2’s weird “something strange is near” messages.

Destiny 2: ‘Something strange is near’ explained

Destiny 2 Heresy Guardians fighting in the Court of Oryx
The Dreadnought is full of shocking horrors and surprises. Image via Bungie

The “something strange is near” message in Destiny 2 happens when you are near some sort of secret. It pops up a lot in the Dreadnought as part of Episode Heresy, and simply means that you should be a bit more attentive to your surroundings and you may find something interesting.

When you see “something strange is near” underneath your radar on the top left of your screen, then look around you for anything that stands out from the rest of the map. Oftentimes this message will be near floating Taken blights that you can shoot to interact with. Doing so will spawn bosses you can fight against, with a loot chest awaiting you once they are defeated.

Other times, it may be an enemy’s body hanging from the ceiling that you can shoot down for a boon boost. Basically, if you see “something strange is near” on your screen, look around your immediate surroundings and start shooting anything that stands out.

The special message brings gifts sometimes, and aims to add increases to your boons while playing the Nether activity during Episode Heresy. Another way to know if a secret is nearby is if your Ghost’s icon on the top right of the screen is showing up.

The Dreadnought is a returning location from Destiny 1, and it first launched alongside The Taken King expansion way back in 2015. Almost 10 years later, it’s back, but it still has similar warning messages about the mysteries and horrors that lie within.

"Something strange is near" Destiny 2
Be careful while exploring its depths. Image via DropD26/Reddit

When The Taken King began, the Dreadnought was extremely secretive about everything that was within on purpose, with Bungie encouraging exploration and player discovery. It seems like this is the case again with the giant Taken ship almost a decade later.


This article will be updated with new information when necessary.


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Author
Image of Scott Duwe
Scott Duwe
Senior Staff Writer
Senior Staff Writer & Call of Duty lead. Professional writer for over 10 years. Lover of all things Marvel, Destiny 2, Metal Gear, Final Fantasy, Resident Evil, and more. Previous bylines include PC Gamer, Red Bull Esports, Fanbyte, and Esports Nation. DogDad to corgis Yogi and Mickey, sports fan (NY Yankees, NY Jets, NY Rangers, NY Knicks), Paramore fanatic, cardio enthusiast.