By Rio Duran

In the newest expansion to a so-called “ten-year game,” Destiny: The Taken King thrives on a new story that you can sink your teeth into, new and complex game modes that test the very fibers of your friendships, and a completely new interface making this one of the most groundbreaking additions to a game ever.

The developers at Bungie strive to give the player the best experience when playing their game and they have certainly outdone themselves this time. The game features new weapon types including side-arms and swords, new competitive game modes like “Rift” and “Mayhem,” and the new “Kings Fall Raid.” People who have played Destiny since its release last year will notice several things that have changed. The navigation screen is more slick and detailed and now displays the new planet, the Dreadnaught, primed for exploration. The newly redesigned inventory page now has a dedicated quest section, as well as an expanded bounty board and all of your ranks conveniently on display. Not to mention a friendly new voice to accompany you on your ventures through the darkness. Voice actor Nolan North, also known for his work as Drake from the Uncharted series, Took on massive challenge of matching Peter Dinklage’s flawless job of voicing your ghost, your dedicated sidekick. Many are conflicted about this decision to replace Dinklage, but after playing The Taken King I can assure you that you will love the ghost more now than ever.

Don’t worry, they haven’t forgotten about the guardians. They have armed us with all new subclasses, the Nightstalker, the Stormcaller, and the Sunbreaker, new exotics and legendaries. Let’s not forget the swords all of which will only help us in our quest to destroy the taken menace. They have added more quests for exotic weapons creating the feeling you have to earn them instead of needing the stars to align just so you can get your 12th No Land Beyond . Also the swords just speak for themselves. There are tons of new ways to experience Destiny and a bunch of new play styles. By deciding to lower the damage of year one gear they force you to to step outside of your comfort zone and let you experiment with all new weapons and set ups. If you are new to the Destiny experience don’t worry about being left behind. Everyone has an item to boost one character to level 25 so you can be at the same place as everyone else.

Overall The Taken King is a worthy addition to the “ten year game” and gives hours of intense gameplay that you won’t want to step away from.