Destiny: The Dark Below

 PlayStation 4
User Score
3.1

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 281 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 43 out of 281
  2. Mixed: 43 out of 281
  3. Negative: 195 out of 281

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  1. SillyRukus
    Apr 20, 2015
    10
    From a fan: The reason I enjoy The Dark Below is because during the "Raid" it teaches players how to work together by using time, teamwork and firepower. It's all about timing! Omnigul is a mean b**ch! The added story is all good in my book. Thank you Bungie and Activision for this incredible game. I actually saved so much $ because I haven't bought a game since the release and the seasonFrom a fan: The reason I enjoy The Dark Below is because during the "Raid" it teaches players how to work together by using time, teamwork and firepower. It's all about timing! Omnigul is a mean b**ch! The added story is all good in my book. Thank you Bungie and Activision for this incredible game. I actually saved so much $ because I haven't bought a game since the release and the season pass.

    For the haters: If you don't like the game because it doesn't have enough story well Destiny will have plenty of story in a 10 year span. Quit and play something else if you don't like Destiny, it's that f'n simple.
    P.S. stop being cry babies.

    Thanks.    … Expand
  2. LuckySevens_7
    Jun 11, 2015
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I know im going to get a lot of hate for this but im not the type to really give a flying toast about it.

    This might not come to you as a surprise to you guys but all you see on this forum all day, everyday, all the god damn time is someone whining, complaining,crying,hating or telling everyone that their leaving destiny forever. So I decided to make this post of appreciation.

    I like Destiny, Im 25 years old, married, no children. I paid about 100$ for this game(including both dlcs), and I have over 1000 combined hours of play time and entertainment from it, I would be an ungrateful brat if I said that I didn't get my moneys worth. Destiny allows me to burn free time with enjoyment. I like the thrill you get when you finally obtain the exotic that you've been waiting for. I like to open chests and find undiscovered presents. I love the fact that no matter how bad Bungie Fcks up, I keep coming back for more. I like the fact that this game entertains me enough that I don't have to spend more dough on other games(for the meanwhile). I love the fact that unlike COD, team tactics are actually essential and necessary to beat the competition. I love the fact that you have so many different things to do every week, all you have to do is chose(Poe/ToO/Nightfalls/Crota raid/Vog raid/Crucible/Farming/Bounties/Strikes). i love the fact that (LFG) allows you to meet new people, and play together from all over the world(diversity is awesome), conversating with them, making new gaming friends, have some laughs about Bungies mistakes, and knocking Skolas on his arse. I love the sense of accomplishment that you feel when you first beat a new raid, or the first time you get 9-0 in ToO, The first time you get that Darn GJallarhorn(although some of you havnt gotten it yet, it will come).

    I know that some of you will hate
    Some of you will be teachers, and correct my spelling mistakes
    Some of you will insult or degrade
    Some of you will dispute that this game is actually pretty good
    Haters gona hate, ainters gona aint...you hate us cuz you ainus
    But that has nothing to do with this post.

    All im saying, is that we should appreciate destiny for what it is. A fun, sometimes rewarding, addicting, very social, visually stunning and enticing game. If it wasn't, people wouldn't have hundreds of hours invested into it.

    Sincerely,
    A satisfied casual gamer    … Expand
  3. MikeMenkes
    Dec 12, 2014
    9
    Most of the bad reviews are critiques of the original game. This is meant to be high level new content. Played at a level corresponding to your own, 28-30, each story is challenging and is best played with co-op. The quest missions continue past the story with mini-modes and sub-bosses. The Hive strike is really good. The new weapon upgrades are welcome and frequent. They did notMost of the bad reviews are critiques of the original game. This is meant to be high level new content. Played at a level corresponding to your own, 28-30, each story is challenging and is best played with co-op. The quest missions continue past the story with mini-modes and sub-bosses. The Hive strike is really good. The new weapon upgrades are welcome and frequent. They did not change the model of the game. Now a new narrator tells a story while you play the missions. There is a lot to do when you add the bounties and quests and the new gear to upgrade. Its consistent with the original game''s quality, which is 9/10 for gameplay and 5/10 for story. Since the story isn't what you replay over and over, this is a solid 8.5/10… Expand
  4. reVangez
    Dec 19, 2014
    9
    Great new visuals, a good atmosphere, a better synchronisation than before.
    I also love the new tactics and bounty system. I have a lot of fun with it :)
    And also a very nice raid.

    The only negativ point i have is the price. It not reflect the content of the dlc! It dont have cost more than 10$.
  5. JoJomonkey
    Dec 9, 2014
    8
    Of course you know that metacritic user reviews are awful for blockbuster games. There is no way that this is a zero or a 2. It's not great, but I am enjoying it despite lack of new content.
  6. notaworry
    Dec 9, 2014
    8
    Too short but overall a good time. I bought it along with the next DLC so it was a little cheaper. I think that once I complete the raid it will be well worth the extra bucks.
  7. ChazeMan
    Dec 10, 2014
    8
    This "expansion" isn't a typical MMO Expansion, but then again, Destiny isn't really an MMO. It's a shooter, and as a shooter, this is a pretty substantial package. It's not the best DLC ever, but it is pretty solid. The raid and crucible maps are obviously the biggest attraction here. 20 bucks is a bit pricey, I'd say this is worth 15 at most. I happened to buy the $100 version of theThis "expansion" isn't a typical MMO Expansion, but then again, Destiny isn't really an MMO. It's a shooter, and as a shooter, this is a pretty substantial package. It's not the best DLC ever, but it is pretty solid. The raid and crucible maps are obviously the biggest attraction here. 20 bucks is a bit pricey, I'd say this is worth 15 at most. I happened to buy the $100 version of the game so I got it for $15.00.… Expand
  8. samburnstein
    Dec 9, 2014
    8
    The first expansion for Destiny, The Dark Below, proves that Bungie is still committed to the Destiny experience even after launch. If you have even mildly enjoyed Destiny, and you have a char. @ level 28-30, then this expansion is a must.
  9. cXeGG
    Dec 18, 2014
    8
    So, here's the deal: You probably already know by now whether or not you're a fan of Destiny, and this expansion is highly unlikely to change your mind either way. If the pitifully told stories, non-existant characterizations, and lather-rinse-repeat gameplay of the main game have turned you off, well, this is more of that, in abundance. If, however, you've come to accept Destiny for allSo, here's the deal: You probably already know by now whether or not you're a fan of Destiny, and this expansion is highly unlikely to change your mind either way. If the pitifully told stories, non-existant characterizations, and lather-rinse-repeat gameplay of the main game have turned you off, well, this is more of that, in abundance. If, however, you've come to accept Destiny for all its quirks, and enjoy the minute-to-minute action, then hey, there's also more of that, in abundance.

    Though three(ish) story missions, one strike (two if you're a PS4 user), one (excellent) raid, and three Crucible maps, doesn't sound like much compared to the $20 price tag, keep in mind that these aren't meant to be one-and-done experiences. In my opinion, all of the single-player content is well worth replaying several times, especially at the higher difficulty levels, which can dramatically change the experience. The two strikes, in particular, are arguably superior to the base game's selection, with the battle against Omnigul serving as a highlight, taking place in a masterfully designed arena that smartly combines close quarters mayhem with a wide open upper area only a double jump away. The crucible maps are uniformly well-designed and contribute well to the available formats. The raid is . . . well, I've not beaten it, but I think it's safe to say it's a suitable follow-up to the Vault of Glass.

    If that were all that came with the $20 investment, the reaction would understably be "ehh." However, this is Destiny, and Destiny is nothing if not perfection through repetition. Through the introduction of Eris, the new quest giver in the Tower, we are finally given some genuine variety with our typical bounties. Yes, they're more of the same "Go here, kill this many murdocks," but now there are specifics added to the proceedings. Now we are expected to slaughter Acolytes with a Void-powered weapon, or punch cursed thralls into explodey oblivion. This doesn't seem like much, but when you've played through the entire game using only your hand cannon, trying out a fusion rifle can feel revolutionary. It turns out that making small tweaks to your existing gameplay loop can have a large impact on staving off monotony.

    So, to my earlier point: Will this expansion change your mind on Destiny? Not at all. The existing flaws and inconveniences are all the louder now, and the glorious highs are even glorious-er. All I know, at the end, is that the most important question for me is easy:

    Is it fun? Yes. Most certainly, yes it is.    … Expand
  10. Asentha
    Apr 5, 2015
    8
    Between being a father and a husband and being in the Navy this review is more on Destiny as a whole more then The Dark Below.

    I have been able to play this game for a solid two months and have had nothing but enjoyment the whole time. The game offers a lot to do when you first start to get into, a lot of action, great story if you actually care of pay attention to it, the force of    Between being a father and a husband and being in the Navy this review is more on Destiny as a whole more then The Dark Below.

    I have been able to play this game for a solid two months and have had nothing but enjoyment the whole time. The game offers a lot to do when you first start to get into, a lot of action, great story if you actually care of pay attention to it, the force of having to make friends to complete your strikes and raids. Also the tease of seeing new equipment to force the feeling of want for that new item.

    As for The Dark Below, I didn't see much improvement from the regular game to the Expansion. Two new vendors, one of which doesn't sell much other then banners to make your character look flashy and some mats to increase Hive weapons. Then you have Xur the weekend seller of Exotic Weapons/Armor. I think they could have done a better job, as far as making a more in depth MMO. I do look forward to the House of Wolves release, but if they are just going to take the formula for The Dark Below and just make small changes that only add a higher level cap a single new raid and no other real reason to continue past just being able to beat the raid on what I will assume to be on Hard, I feel that they will surely lose a lot of players because not many will tolerate a simple map hack and a couple of quick mission strings.    … Expand
  11. SchroederRock
    Dec 9, 2014
    7
    For whatever reason Metacritic hasn't opened up the opportunity to grade for the XB1. There are some content differences since Activision made a deal with Sony for an extra strike mission and standard story mission content, but the major emphasis of The Dark Below remains the same between the two consoles in that the Hive are ascending to major threat status against Earth. The expansionFor whatever reason Metacritic hasn't opened up the opportunity to grade for the XB1. There are some content differences since Activision made a deal with Sony for an extra strike mission and standard story mission content, but the major emphasis of The Dark Below remains the same between the two consoles in that the Hive are ascending to major threat status against Earth. The expansion content extends what Destiny is, but @ $20 it isn't really a great sell. Yes, you'll get a couple multiplayer maps and more stuff to do in a solo or group setting. There can be many hours of content here, but it all hinges on whether you do the six-man raid content. If not, this isn't really worth your money. If you are big into this game, you're going to buy this anyways. But the flaws of Destiny are in no way remedied by expanding content - those flaws being well-thought story telling and meaningful ascension through player development (leveling). Destiny plays well but still has a hard time being taken seriously as an MMOFPS. The second expansion set will really be the final nail in the coffin depending on the quality & quantity made available to players, otherwise those that hoped for a bigger Destiny will have to wait for the confirmed sequel.… Expand
  12. felasi
    Dec 28, 2014
    7
    Only by the Dark Below if your are hungry for more, and feel like Crota (the new raid boss) needs to die.

    Playing this, it seemed that bungie took onboard feedback from the community on destiny and made some changes. The few missions that come with the expansion had some good fights. However, all those hours I put in the vault of glass (previous raid) to reach level 30 seem for naught,    Only by the Dark Below if your are hungry for more, and feel like Crota (the new raid boss) needs to die.

    Playing this, it seemed that bungie took onboard feedback from the community on destiny and made some changes. The few missions that come with the expansion had some good fights. However, all those hours I put in the vault of glass (previous raid) to reach level 30 seem for naught, as now I can just go buy armor from a vendor to reach level 31.

    The expansion really is more of the same and if your interested in taking on the new raid (which seems alot shorter than the VOG raid) and using your exotic weapons in PVP or PVE, then you should get this expansion.

    For those of you who weren't impressed with destiny in the beginning then there really isnt a need to get this. For an expansion, its OK.    … Expand
  13. Jaidenbrkl1
    May 8, 2023
    7
    Now you may be wondering why I didn’t count Expansions 1 and 2 for Destiny and that is because it is just a Destiny update with more new weapons.
  14. LVCritic
    Dec 10, 2014
    6
    I played this game like nuts disagreed with most reviews on it. I just really wanted so much to love it. I still have all 3 classes at lvl 30. But after the dark below DLC I can see were this is headed and I will have to agree with critics this is a 6 to maybe 7 on the rating. I would give it now a 6.5. I love the game-play but trust me playing tons of strikes/nighfalls and raids I can seeI played this game like nuts disagreed with most reviews on it. I just really wanted so much to love it. I still have all 3 classes at lvl 30. But after the dark below DLC I can see were this is headed and I will have to agree with critics this is a 6 to maybe 7 on the rating. I would give it now a 6.5. I love the game-play but trust me playing tons of strikes/nighfalls and raids I can see that for the new DLC they are really stretching the grinding to a crazy slow paced grind who would think 2 extra levels would be so hard. all my exotics have to be reforged which is the near 50x exotics. the old raid gear is garbage I have to dismantle them all it hurts just cause I had to grind for all 3 classes to get the 30 gear. Raid weapons I achieved are garbage and I had collected all of them too. It seems to me like the DLC doesn't have enough content and they are pushing slow grinding on us till next DLC and we rinse and repeat. It was a hard decision to uninstall the game but it was for the best. Bungie I loved the halo series, but it seems that's all you ever got right. Destiny has solid game-play, but nothing else. My rating 6.5.… Expand
  15. Hi_Im_Game
    Dec 14, 2014
    6
    Well, I'm still enjoying the game but mainly because I play with a group of five friends who have all put in over 300 hours+ together. If I didn't have that, I don't think I would be playing this game as much anymore. That being said, if you aren't fully maxed out on several characters (level 29-30 with 300+ raid + exotic weapons) and don't do the raids then I can't recommend thisWell, I'm still enjoying the game but mainly because I play with a group of five friends who have all put in over 300 hours+ together. If I didn't have that, I don't think I would be playing this game as much anymore. That being said, if you aren't fully maxed out on several characters (level 29-30 with 300+ raid + exotic weapons) and don't do the raids then I can't recommend this expansion other then getting access to ROC strikes and some nightfall/weekly missions. I no longer play PvP because it is horrible with the current radar system they are using IMHO. They have at least fixed several of the map related issues that make the PvP a bit more bearable but it's something I am over at this point.

    Here is one of my main issues with this expansion:
    Everyone who didn't buy the expansion been locked out of strikes that drop engrams and some of the weekly strikes. This should not be the case especially since they had access to these things before the dark below.

    Now my problems are probably not the same as other people. Here are the problems for the people have extensively played the game up until this point:

    - All my 300+ legendary weapons I have (30+) are now not as good as the 331+ legendary weapons
    - All my raid gear I spent months getting to help me get that elusive 30 is now useless because you can buy better gear with more light at the Vanguard or Crucible quartermaster on the first day of the expansion
    - All my exotic weapons I leveled to 300+ (around 7-8) now have to be traded in and reset to 0% progress to be re-leveled and with an insane amount of glimmer (7000+)
    - You are locked out of many of the items needed from Eris till rank 3 or 4 to level items such as the Murmur upgrade or the trade in's for radiant shards/energy for one or the other
    - Limited vault space along with capped marks and glimmer trying to prevent you from leveling too fast
    - Locked out of the raid helmet again until the hard mode raid in January

    My biggest and possibly the worst thing they have done is make a whole new raid currency. All that hard work you spent getting all those energies and shards you can now no longer use for raid gear that drops from Crota's end. It's just just a bull**** excuse from Bungie to control you on how quickly you can level. The term to use for this is "artifical" content. By simply limiting you on how much you can level each week with the raid they can make sure you won't get too high level before they make the hard mode in January and make it seem like there is a lot more content then there really is. This is also evident by forcing you to do Eris's bounties till you get to rank 4 which there are only four of each day.

    But again, as bad as it all sounds there are some good things that have come from all this.

    + 8 strikes now cycle in the strike playlists
    + There are brand new exotic gear and weapons and some of them are pretty awesome (Ruin Wings for example)
    + Brand new legendary ships, legendary weapons, and shaders
    + Some of the raid weapons and gear are pretty awesome

    This expansion gets a 5 from me solely for the raid. I find the raid to be challenging at times and fun. It incorporates the sword on several sections just like the relic on the VoG raid. They have done a great job on encouraging teamwork on several sections as well as rewarding players with a more fair drop system on gear. For this sole reason, you should get the expansion especially if you enjoy playing the more challenging content in the game. And for all you people complaining about raid matchmaking, please stop because you don't realize how difficult the raid is for people who have never played it before. Go on destinylfg and look for a group if you are so interested in trying out the harder content. There are plenty of good and friendly people on that site who are more than willing to help you out. I agree that they should have made a system such as LFG in the game but it is what it is at this point so please get over it.

    There is still more to come with the January update where they will add the hard mode Crota's end raid along with a new weapon that can be leveled from white to legendary and then to exotic (can only get it to exotic by doing the hard mode raid). This alone gives me something to strive for in my new quest for 32. I still enjoy this game because, as I've said before in my Destiny review, the fundamental FPS gameplay is the best around.

    I hope from this whole experience Bungie will realize some of their main flaws in their game are with the RPG elements and not with the gameplay itself. In addition, the story telling and mission structure needs a large overhaul. There needs to be more than just strikes and raids, maybe something along the line of firefights from ODST. If you are expecting a new game each expansion, don't get your hopes up it will always be more of the same. If that is not what you want, I encourage you to look elsewhere or wait for Destiny 2 in a couple of years. Thanks for reading    … Expand
  16. KukistajA
    Nov 11, 2015
    6
    The Dark Below was fairly decent DLC, adding enough content for the price. It doesn't change the fundamentals though, so if you enjoyed the grindfest this is more of the same, if you didn't, this DLC won't make you like it.
  17. jedi5diah
    Jan 6, 2015
    5
    4 points for interesting raid and
    1 point for some excellent design for weapons (husk of pits)
    minus 3 for all the rest of repetitiveness.
    minus 2 for breaking original gear effectiveness, they are useless upon the release of dlc
  18. Malooga
    Dec 23, 2014
    5
    Huge fan of Destiny here. Have to be completely honest, this DLC was lacking HARD. What happened to the rumored "4 new strikes" planned for this release? People who hacked the game and saw points on the map tallied over 14 new locations, where the f*** are they? We get 3 missions, 2 strikes and a raid. I count 6 Bungie, and that's if I let the spouts off existing maps slip by. Would itHuge fan of Destiny here. Have to be completely honest, this DLC was lacking HARD. What happened to the rumored "4 new strikes" planned for this release? People who hacked the game and saw points on the map tallied over 14 new locations, where the f*** are they? We get 3 missions, 2 strikes and a raid. I count 6 Bungie, and that's if I let the spouts off existing maps slip by. Would it have been that hard to make a new planet for this DLC? It could have been exactly the same content, just on Mercury or something, and would have totally been worth it. No, better I trudge the same trodden path and complete the same mediocre tasks. New weapons were cool, if half of them weren't literally "your old weapon 2.0" and there was still a place to buy the old Crucible/Vanguard legendary weapons. Nope, they're gone, and now we have these "better" weapons. C'mon Bungie, I've been more than fair and overlooked a lot of simple mistakes in this game, but damnit I paid a third of the price for this DLC and I got a tenth of the value. Where are the risks? Where is the content? Today, as a Destiny fan, I hang my head low. My hopes for any future DLC has also been smashed, but since I paid for it already I'm sure Bungie could care less. 5/10, wait for a cheaper bundle of ALL content, don't waste the money now.… Expand
  19. Tinrod
    Dec 16, 2014
    5
    First of all I think Destiny is the most fun I've had in AAA gaming for recent years, and I intend to keep playing it. But Bungie really does make some really bad calls that are slowly turning me off.

    I like the encounter design and the level of challenge in the DLC content. At it's best it feels like Halo games on Legendary, but with personalised weapon selection and perks. I don't    First of all I think Destiny is the most fun I've had in AAA gaming for recent years, and I intend to keep playing it. But Bungie really does make some really bad calls that are slowly turning me off.

    I like the encounter design and the level of challenge in the DLC content. At it's best it feels like Halo games on Legendary, but with personalised weapon selection and perks. I don't really mind the lack of storytelling as I don't play shooters for the story.

    But I have to say I'm bummed out that the DLC completely trivialised the Iron Banner marathon I did just couple of weeks ago in order to get to level 30. I played the PVP mode for 3-4 hours every day for a week in order to get the gear I wanted, just to find out that now I could buy better gear from the vendors with all the marks I hadn't spent. Basically nothing from November Iron Banner tournament even is useful anymore.

    9/10 for the combat design

    1/10 for very little respect for the audience's time spent on their game.    … Expand
  20. Hyperborean
    Dec 9, 2014
    5
    So little so late. This DLC does not add to the current end game so much as add a new end game. And its just a barren and empty but now the focus is on a new raid. The new raid makes the old raid obsolete. If you have not bought this DLC and you like destiny you might as well wait for the next chunk of DLC that will make the dark below obsolete. Why grind for hours to get to level 32So little so late. This DLC does not add to the current end game so much as add a new end game. And its just a barren and empty but now the focus is on a new raid. The new raid makes the old raid obsolete. If you have not bought this DLC and you like destiny you might as well wait for the next chunk of DLC that will make the dark below obsolete. Why grind for hours to get to level 32 when you could just wait three months and jump to level 33 in a few days? This is the worst sort of way to update an MMO style grind game.… Expand
  21. Jordanrosser13
    Mar 6, 2015
    5
    This add on adds a very minimal amount of content and does it very poorly in some respects. The new strike (or strikes on Playstations) are decent additions to the playlists and the new raid is a blast. However, things such as the three story missions and the limiting of certain in game options (i.e the nightfall and weekly requiring this $20 purchase in order to play them) is veryThis add on adds a very minimal amount of content and does it very poorly in some respects. The new strike (or strikes on Playstations) are decent additions to the playlists and the new raid is a blast. However, things such as the three story missions and the limiting of certain in game options (i.e the nightfall and weekly requiring this $20 purchase in order to play them) is very uninteresting, greedy, and flat out absurd at $20. You will gain a cool sparrow and 2 extra possible levels which is ok I suppose but honestly only two levels to the cap is not a very cool thing to do considering that now, four months down the road we still don't have the follow up DLC so the game is now just as monotonous as it was in November. If you were angered by Destiny's anemic amount of content but still want to play it, buy this. If you hate Destiny's guts, this will not sweeten the deal.… Expand
  22. TheDude-
    Sep 17, 2015
    5
    while the loot is excellent and the raid is very creative there is pretty much nothing to the story and the raid while creative is extremely easy and often leaves with nothing to do not to mention the story missions feel lazily put together.
  23. Vyrotix
    Dec 12, 2014
    4
    I am honestly disappointed with this DLC. I won't be going into any specifics, but I was expecting way more than just -complete a mission, go back to mission giver, get another, complete the mission..- and the cycle repeats.

    I was expecting more of a story driven DLC pack, and not a lazy layout that has you going back to the damn vendor every time you complete a f***ing mission or now    I am honestly disappointed with this DLC. I won't be going into any specifics, but I was expecting way more than just -complete a mission, go back to mission giver, get another, complete the mission..- and the cycle repeats.

    I was expecting more of a story driven DLC pack, and not a lazy layout that has you going back to the damn vendor every time you complete a f***ing mission or now what they call "quest", which is the same f***ing thing!

    And don't even get me started on the vendor! She doesn't even have anything! She has emblems, and materials that help you upgrade Hive weapons. Why can't she sell weapons or armor? She is so useless, you'll never find yourself using her unless you buy those hive materials that help you upgrade.

    And how is this expansion even fair towards light leveled players? Unless you are under LL 27, you'll find yourself constantly dying because of the unfair amount of skilled enemies the game throws at you! I kid you not, there was a story mission where you find yourself killing three yellow wizards, a yellow ogre and an almost impossible wizard. Oh and did I mention they are also throwing insane amounts of knight's and thrawl's at you?

    I don't recommend this pack, and I most certainly do not recommend getting an expansion pass if you don't have one yet until it is determined that the next drop "House of Wolves" will be better than this abomination of a DLC.

    The Crucible maps are okay, but not really enjoyable IMO. I would talk about some of the fun that I had during playing in Crucible, but all of that crumbled to the ground when I was the MVP on my team (In Clash, I went 24-3) and the worst player on my team got the new Hive exotic, called No Land Beyond, and a combination of Runed Core materials also. And I received the best of all... zip f***ing zero items whatsoever.

    It would be a totally different subject bringing in the topic of the awful loot drop rate, but this review is for DLC, and in this review, I give The Dark Below, a 4.2.

    If you disagree, I don't really care. if you say this isn't helpful, you are probably right. I submit my opinion on to this site, just like you. We in the MC community respect each other, or that is what I hope happens.    … Expand
  24. commando41
    May 27, 2015
    4
    /sigh I wanted HoW to be a turning point for me but in the direction that justified my love for this game. The moment I did the first mission and found myself in Venus going the opposite direction of the skiff map (the map where you fight the Archon Priest) I was just utterly disgusted and disappointed. I will say that Bungie did an excellent job with the armor and weapon upgrades...but/sigh I wanted HoW to be a turning point for me but in the direction that justified my love for this game. The moment I did the first mission and found myself in Venus going the opposite direction of the skiff map (the map where you fight the Archon Priest) I was just utterly disgusted and disappointed. I will say that Bungie did an excellent job with the armor and weapon upgrades...but having also deleted my VoG raid gear awhile back made it all that more painful. In any event the Weapons and Armor upgrade path is awesome, I am sure the new PVP maps are as well..albeit the Trials of Osirus being very unbalanced i.e. Warlocks definitely get more than one life due to their talent tree...in any event a huge let down all around in regards to the PVE aspect. Destiny just feels like someone just painted my car on my driveway and is trying to sale it to me as if it's a brand new car...all the while i can still see the wrappings from the cheeseburger I ate sitting in the passenger seat. All in all if someone coming into this game for the first time will find both DLC's fun (albeit no Raid in HoW) but for me, who has played this game for the last 8 months, I am all but done with this bait and switch game that is called Destiny.… Expand
  25. Bloubul1
    Dec 10, 2014
    4
    The Good: The new raid, strike missions and multiplayer maps are a nice addition to the game. The graphics as always are brilliant. Like the main game its kept its excellent multiplayer charm and FPS mechanics.

    The Bad: The story as before is not up to par, one gets this feeling of emptiness. Very poor narration and back story to the missions. Same old mission structure as well. The    The Good: The new raid, strike missions and multiplayer maps are a nice addition to the game. The graphics as always are brilliant. Like the main game its kept its excellent multiplayer charm and FPS mechanics.

    The Bad: The story as before is not up to par, one gets this feeling of emptiness. Very poor narration and back story to the missions. Same old mission structure as well.
    The fact that they re-use the same planets is poor as well from Bungie. There are so many other options that could have added much needed flavour to the game. Like using Mercury or one of the many moons of our solar system. Bungie could have added heat damage or anti gravity to these worlds to add new game mechanics. The loot system is still the same. I really can't see any change in this. Boring as hell to be honest. The price of this expansion is way to hefty. 20 Bucks? I would say 10 bucks at most.

    Conclusion: The same issues that hampered the main game still persist in this expansion, and to top it all of Bungie charge us 20 bucks for this, shame on you Bungie. This expansion is below average at best.    … Expand
  26. j_obediah
    Dec 23, 2014
    4
    The Dark Below misleads in a lot of ways.

    3 Story missions? False. You will be rehashing and treading familiar ground with the same enemies and a different narrative. If you count new missions as a new reason to do the same thing you've already been doing. Sure, but if you're expecting new content. Then really you get less than 1 mission's worth of actually new areas, since, as stated,    The Dark Below misleads in a lot of ways.

    3 Story missions? False. You will be rehashing and treading familiar ground with the same enemies and a different narrative. If you count new missions as a new reason to do the same thing you've already been doing. Sure, but if you're expecting new content. Then really you get less than 1 mission's worth of actually new areas, since, as stated, all the enemies are the same, and the only thing that really changes is the narrator and reason for treading.

    Strike? Same situation as the missions. You are not getting a new strike. You are getting half of a new strike.

    The only two things that are worth while about this DLC are the multiplayer maps, which people shell out $15 for on a regular basis anyway. (Some people like to get ripped off) and the raid, which many people who bought The Dark Below will never play anyway.

    Oh and if you don't buy the DLC, then you will lose out on certain portions of the game from time to time. Bungie's really sorry, I'm sure.

    Verdict: Nothing really new that I'm saying that hasn't already been said. I'm just cementing it. This DLC is not very expansive compared to other RPGs and MMOs, but more than generous when considering most FPSs (not including Borderlands). So if you haven't bought it already, choose your path based on the reason you played it in the first place. But the stufff they did give isn't all that great. That's why I give it the score I did.    … Expand
  27. Dinamyk
    Dec 12, 2014
    4
    The Dark Below is a huge disappointment because not only is the content not rich enough, but also because it introduces problems with new level cap at 32.

    The new character, Eris, which acts as a vendor and quest giver, just appears in the Tower out of the blue with no background or introduction whatsoever apart from the trailer, might as well be a posting board . The 3 new story    The Dark Below is a huge disappointment because not only is the content not rich enough, but also because it introduces problems with new level cap at 32.

    The new character, Eris, which acts as a vendor and quest giver, just appears in the Tower out of the blue with no background or introduction whatsoever apart from the trailer, might as well be a posting board . The 3 new story missions are just more of the same "go there, kill everything along the way, use the bot sometimes", there's virtually no storytelling or character interaction whatsoever. AND they're relatively short and mostly on the same kind of areas as before on the Cosmodrome and on the Moon, except on the second mission which is literally two corridors and one large room. Not having a completely new setting, like for instance a new planet, which would be very cool is a huge detriment to this DLC. And being on the same locations it really makes it feel like this was content removed from the original game only to be sold as DLC later... They did, however, take care to prevent exploiting the maps on these missions, you actually can't stay safely back where the enemies won't follow you, behind the door/passage to the main boss area, which was usually possible before. Before starting them and after finishing them, the world is very much the same as before, there is absolutely no impact in defeating the so-called almighty Crota... These missions are harder than before too, for instance a level 26 mission here is harder than a level 26 mission before. The same goes for the strikes. The one on Earth is hard because it's a constant shooting gallery mostly on closed quarters with little room for flanking and strategy, which makes for more than a grind overall. The one on Mars is more interesting, due to its location - the Black Garden. Didn't play the new raid yet, but I've heard good things about it. The 3 new multiplayer maps are ok: they're entirely new maps, one on the Moon in the style of the Temple of Crota (only darker), one on Earth, a bigger, more open sniper's map with vehicles as well, and a corridor heavy map in the Black Garden.

    The level cap is now 32, and new weapons go to 331 attack, making your old weapons kind of obsolete, especially if you aim for doing dailies, weeklies, nightfalls and the new raid at the max level of difficulty (30, 32 raid is coming later). So all those hours you spent grinding? Get ready for a lot more... You can technically update your old exotics (ONLY EXOTICS, no luck with legendaries) with Xur, but doing so resets your upgrade progression and in practice costs ~7500 glimmer and 8 strange coins... FOR EACH weapon and armor piece. And you can only do this for a random selection of 6 weapons and 6 armor pieces that Xur has available each week. Furthermore, Vanguard, Crucible and Faction weapons and gear require not only rank 2 or 3 and marks as before, but you need one new item (vanguard or crucible commendation) that you can get only as a reward for ranking up levels. So, effectively, you will only buy one of those items per 2500 reputation points, forcing more grind for reputation even on players that are high level on that faction (if you're level 9 say on vanguard, you don't get commendations retroactively). People who just got into Destiny are actually better off than veterans because they don't have the huge history of the previous grind. Furthermore, the new missions and strikes are now part of the daily and weekly pool of missions, so when the daily or weekly is one of the new ones, people that haven't bought the DLC will not be able to play those and get rewards. They paid money for Destiny, and now they have access to even less content... This DLC is not exactly "extra content" then, people that don't buy it are actually penalized for not doing so... And the DLC effectively forces a new grind phase if people want to keep going after higher level stuff. This is what Destiny keeps boiling down to: keep grinding the same missions/strikes/raid/locations over and over again.

    I started playing when the demo came out, about 2 weeks ago and met nice people to play with. Everyone that started playing since the game came out or a little later are very frustrated with these changes. It's true that the shooting mechanics are very well done, playing feels good, the game is addictive, and playing with friends provides fun in doing things together - if you're already fan of Destiny this DLC is kind of obligatory. But if you're on the fence about buying or not, know that the new content is short and poor, mostly more of the same, still no storytelling whatsoever, and overall promoting and being based on continuous grind. And even for veterans I've met a few that actually are giving up on the game due to extreme dejection and frustrating.    … Expand
  28. WARCHILD
    Dec 19, 2014
    4
    It's too late for me... I paid for the DLC because I was enjoying the PvP aspect of the game. However, it has been 2 months of PvP disappointment. There is chronic lag that was effecting my gameplay severely. That was resolved and I pre-ordered the DLC. Since then, the chronic lag has been plaguing at least 1/3 of all the players I encounter in every match. Their severe lag makes it nearIt's too late for me... I paid for the DLC because I was enjoying the PvP aspect of the game. However, it has been 2 months of PvP disappointment. There is chronic lag that was effecting my gameplay severely. That was resolved and I pre-ordered the DLC. Since then, the chronic lag has been plaguing at least 1/3 of all the players I encounter in every match. Their severe lag makes it near impossible to kill them and routinely you will find their names at the top of the standings after each match. Bungie has never addressed the lag -- They simply say they are aware that some are having problems. It's nearly impossible to enjoy one hour of PvP without the frustration of severe lag.

    The currency system is trash. It was terrible and now it's just bad... slight improvement I suppose. The problem is that you will grind and grind and grind for nothing. If you didn't buy the DLC you have a brick for a game. If you did buy the DLC you are now in a new grind for glimmer. If you are primarily a PvP player -- you can write this game off for good. The PvP event called Iron Banner awarded us with "epic" gear the three times you could play it. Now with the DLC all of that epic gear is rendered "beta" and you get to start over from scratch because you can't upgrade what was the "best" PvP gear in the game.

    The imbalances for PvP weapons is severe and very punishing to players who don't exploit the imbalances. Suros Regime is a prime example of a weapon that has dominated all of PvP since the very beginning. A token "nerf" did nothing to resolve the imbalance. I wish I could say that was the worst but it's not. Now that the new DLC is out, we are finding that virtually any new weapon in the game is going to wreck all the work you put into previous weapons. Again, the only way to upgrade is via the exotics which, unless you are a no-life neckbeard, you probably only have one and it's not your weapon of choice either.

    It just gets worse and worse as time goes on. As a congratulations from Bungie for buying the new DLC I got some in-game mail with some bonus items. I was excited! I went and opened the mail and found that good old Bungie had awarded me with COMPLETELY WORTHLESS items that were dismantled and thrown away because they could not be used by a single one of my characters. Worse than that, the quality of the items were blue... that's level 20 gear in a game where if you're not level 30 you can't even attempt the elite battles. As a long time fan that was the ultimate slap in the face. How insulting can you get???? I buy your game and you send me thank you mail. In that mail you give me a handful of dog sheeeit! WTF is wrong with you Bungie?

    I have waited all this time to write my review of the game. I know one thing for sure. There are millions and millions of fan boys who have not snapped out of their initial phase of addiction. Many shooter fans are having their very first MMO addiction experience and so they have no idea how bad this game is. They're hooked on the "progression" and because they're new to the MMO effect on the mind, they have no idea that ultimately they are getting bent over. They don't even realize that they are suffering from chronic connection issues. They don't care that Bungie just walled off half of the game and nullified 90% of there invested time. One day they will wake up and learn what most of us MMO players already have.    … Expand
  29. DestinyDoer
    Jul 4, 2020
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Although I disagree with what multiple but not all other people say about this game, this DLC is not the best. Still four types of enemies? The story is way too short.… Expand
  30. gdmatt
    Oct 5, 2017
    3
    Destiny: The Dark Below, the first DLC for Destiny is a criminally disappointing and lackluster mess that only seeks to push the remaining Destiny players away from the game.
    Apart from an OK raid, The Dark Below offers nothing new the Destiny experience and essentially ignores the last 3 months of progress made by players.
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Awards & Rankings

37
#37 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
63

Mixed or average reviews - based on 41 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 29 out of 41
  3. Negative: 3 out of 41
  1. Games Master UK
    Feb 22, 2015
    79
    An extension of Destiny's triumphs and flaws that ultimately wins us over with its new raid. [Mar 2015, p.68]
  2. GameOver.gr
    Feb 10, 2015
    60
    Once again Bungie has failed to deliver what was expected by most of its following. This DLC's additions to the main game are almost superficial with the repetition, the main flaw of Destiny's design, being its bane.
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  3. Playstation Official Magazine UK
    Feb 7, 2015
    80
    The Dark Below doesn't revolutionise Destiny's addictive endgame, but the superb new missions and the lure of new gear should tide you over 'til the House of Wolves. [Feb 2015, p.91]
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