Have you heard? There is a new Destiny game releasing later this year and KontrolFreek – which is a partner with Bungie and Activision – was invited out to Los Angeles this past week to attend the big reveal event. We were able to officially unveil our newest Performance Thumbstick – Destiny 2 CQC Signature Edition – and play a lot of Destiny 2. And we got to say, we walked away excited and were very impressed by what we saw. So here is a rundown of some of our biggest takeaways from the event.

Awesome Location

Bungie hosted the reveal event in a huge airplane hangar, located near the Hawthorne airport on the west side of Los Angeles. Situated next to Space X, this venue was the PERFECT location to showcase Destiny 2 for the first time to the world.

As we checked-in with the crowds of attendees and made our way into the hangar – complete with sounds of planes landing and taking off overhead – it was clear we were in for a thrilling experience.

The venue was split into two main areas: the presentation theater, which was highlighted throughout the livestream, and the gameplay area. Instead of us writing about all the laborious details regarding what the space looked like, just check out our behind-the-scenes video below to get the full feel for the space.

But as cool as the event space was, we were all there for one reason: to play Destiny 2. And let us tell you, we got to play A LOT of content. We went hands-on with the revamped 4v4 PvP, a new Strike mission and one of the game’s early story missions. And while there is too much to cover in one blog post, here are our biggest takeaways.

Focus on Community

If you consider yourself a part of #FreekNation, you know that we’re all about community here at KontrolFreek. And Bungie is no different when it comes to Destiny. The original Destiny was built on a foundation of co-op gameplay, but as pointed out during the reveal, 50% of all Destiny players never experienced what was the “best” content: Raids and Strikes. That was because to access that content, you had to coordinate with multiple friends outside the game. There was no matchmaking, so if you were a lone wolf, some of the best Destiny content was off limits.

Destiny 2 is changing that in a big way. Bungie introduced the idea of in-game Clans. While the concept of Clans is not new, a Clan system is baked into Destiny 2. You and your group of friends can create custom banners and mottos in-game, making it easier than ever to let the Destiny world know all about you.

But what if you are one of those lone wolves who doesn’t belong to a Clan but wants to play Raids and Strikes? Well, instead of going the straight up matchmaking route, solo players have the option of joining games with established Clans, who will act as guides as they take you through the latest Raids and Strikes. The best content in Destiny 2 is no longer off-limits to single players. Here’s the kicker: Let’s say you want to run a Raid with your Clan, but one of your members isn’t available. Instead of needing to scramble to find a replacement offline, you can now find solo players looking to experience the content and have them join your game. Solo players get to experience Raids and Strikes while Clans are never left hanging without a full group to run those Raids and Strikes.

Play How You Want

Destiny is all about embracing your own playstyle. In the original game, that manifested itself with the class system, which was broken down into three specific archetypes: Hunter, Warlock and Titan. Now, all three of those classes went through some changes between vanilla Destiny and the latest expansion release. But fans will be pumped to know that all three will be back for Destiny 2. And while all three will be slighted updated for Destiny 2, players should feel right at home.

But Bungie was not content to rest on its laurels for Destiny 2 and will be introducing three new subclasses for players: Titan’s Sentinel, Warlock’s Dawnblade and Hunter’s Arcstrider

Ever wanted to manifest a sweet Captain America-like shield out of raw energy and use it to deflect incoming enemy projectiles, melee foes into oblivion with a powerful shield bash or ricochet it off multiple enemies like the solar system’s most powerful pinball? Good, because that’s where the new Sentinel class comes in.

Let’s say you’re more interested in hovering above enemies and raining down literal fire on enemies via an awesome-looking flaming sword. Seems like the Dawnblade subclass is for you.

Want to play with a class a little more focused on finesse? How about one that allows to dance around enemies and wreck them with an electric staff, kind of like if you were the ultra-version of TMNT Donatello with his bow staff? The new Arcstrider subclass will allow you to do just that.

While we didn’t get our hands on all the new subclasses during the reveal event, we saw plenty of footage and they all look amazing. While just as flashy as the three legacy classes, they look to offer new gameplay wrinkles and are sure to add an additional layer of personalization for players come launch.

A Reason to Care

When vanilla Destiny launched in 2014, there was a lot of promise and potential in regard to its gameplay, but the narrative elements of the game got a little lost. Over time, as expansions released, Bungie recognized just how important a strong story was for fans, especially those fans that grew up with the developer as they released the critically-acclaimed and narrative-heavy Halo games. Characters became more fleshed out, villain’s motives were explained, lore was greater established. But, fans wanted more from Bungie.

Well, Bungie definitely heard the call from fans and said during the presentation that Destiny 2 will be the most story-driven game they have produced. While we were given a brief glimpse at the narrative potential for Destiny 2 (i.e., the last city on Earth has been destroyed and, as a result, all Guardians lost their Light), Bungie promised a truly epic story, complete with the most story cut scenes the studio has ever created.

Lore is such a huge part of the Destiny universe, and it’s great to see that Bungie isn’t pulling any punches this time around.

So, what do you think? Are you as hyped about Destiny 2 as we are? What returning feature or new mechanic has you the most excited? We want to hear from you, so sound off in the comments!

The post WE CAN CONFIRM. DESTINY 2 IS OUT OF THIS WORLD appeared first on KontrolFreek - Performance Gaming & Controller Accessories for Xbox One, Xbox 360, PS4 & PS3.