It’s been one month since Bungie confirmed it would be returning to Destiny 2. After releasing what was dubbed its final update in June, the studio announced in September that plans had changed. It’s now in the process of ‘unvaulting’ the FPS game – restoring all the lost content that was cut away over the years, attempting to streamline the player experience at the cost of its legacy. To talk in more depth about what that actually looks like, when we can expect it, and what else the future might hold, Head of Product Josh Deane joins Principal Communications Manager Dylan ‘dmg04’ Gafner for a fresh Destiny 2 update.
“We’re trying something new today,” Gafner says of this conversational format, which he says won’t be a weekly series but instead “a general space for us to give updates on our studio.” That will include both Destiny 2 and Marathon, as well as potentially more general updates about the goings-on at Bungie. For now, the focus is on the unvaulting process, the community response that spawned it, and how, in Deane’s words, the team intends to “rebuild a relationship with you all, not simply announce a future for a cheap win.”
Deane calls the months leading up to the Moment of Triumph update “as difficult a time as we’ve ever experienced.” Despite this, he says “it was necessary for that moment to not be a funeral; it had to be a battle cry. Basically, light the beacons and hope Rohan would answer. And you all did. You didn’t just rage; you showed up. You shared your stories about your memories in Destiny, what the world meant to you, and made sure to petition how disastrous it would be to walk away from this amazing universe.”
“It inspired everyone,” Deane recalls. Once the decision was made to try taking those tentative first steps back, the starting point was obvious: “repairing trust and making Destiny 2 ‘whole.'” This starts with unvaulting, which was initially Bungie’s answer to “some real technical challenges,” but ultimately “fragmented our experience and broke faith with our community.” Deane’s hope for what that ‘whole’ can be goes beyond that, however. “It means restoring Destiny’s past, present, and future.”
It won’t be fast. Destiny 2 unvaulting is currently in pre-production, with Bungie ensuring “the process is working and hitting our quality bar.” Deane expects this to run until January or February 2027, at which point he estimates that the full production will then take another full 12 months. “It’s a lot of content.”
The primary focus is on the “campaigns, strikes, and raids from vaulted expansions,” which includes the Red War of Destiny 2’s launch, along with Forsaken, Curse of Osiris, and Warmind. Menagerie is also being included here, because it “holds a special place in our hearts (and we’ve seen years of community requests for a return).” Beyond that, Bungie is investigating “stretch goals” such as free roam destinations, seasonal activities, PvP maps, and weapon updates for raids and raid lairs.
Some additional aspects are being considered, such as an update to the New Light Experience and seasonal hubs, but Deane notes these “could come at a cost for what we want to build for you in the future.” What does that mean? “This is the part of the conversation where I need to start talking about intent, even knowing some things are subject to change in success or failure.”
Deane admits that “time isn’t our friend; we’re playing from behind with the cards we have and I’m sure we’ll have to take more punches and make some hard decisions along the way.” Despite this, the studio is “marching forward with a phased plan for Destiny’s future.” This comes in three parts: a fresh celebration “that provides new updates for you all to enjoy;” the legacy of “the whole experience” from the past decade-plus; and a third, as-of-yet redacted piece. Expect more details on these in around February.
“The main thing we should all be on the same page on is we have a steep mountain to climb,” Deane reminds us. “The challenges we face are real to forge a new path for Bungie. It’s never been more important for our community to keep talking to us, to keep sharing your passion (and critiques), and to build each other up as one community.”
In service of this, Deane closes on one appeal: “The Destiny and Marathon communities need to heal.” While the community is somewhat shared between the two, there have been vocal groups on both sides, vehemently expressing their belief that the other half is holding their preferred game back. “The majority of our Bungie team is legacy Destiny, and we will all tell you that nothing can help bridge us into the future more than for Marathon to rapidly evolve and become sustainable.”
While the studio is working on that pre-production for the unvaulting process, it’s also been preparing Marathon Symbiosis, due to launch in December. “It’s a formative period for all of us here at Bungie that will help determine the shape of our future,” Deane concludes, “so please encourage each other and know that your support gives our team the energy to finish the fight.”