Destiny 2: Heresy adds long abandoned location, Star Wars collab

Destiny 2 players will soon return to the long-lost Dreadnaught that makes its reappearance in the upcoming expansion Heresy on Feb. 4, 2025. The Hive warship has been partially accessible in the game as the setting of King’s Fall reprised raid, but the rest of the location has never been fully open for exploration.

Bungie claimed that the Dreadnaught, which was introduced in Destiny 1 in The Taken King expansion, has changed over the years and is now introducing “new challenges, enemies and fresh combat experience”. In Destiny 1 the Dreadnaught served as a key battleground where multiple enemy factions, including the Hive, Taken, and Cabal clashed in ongoing conflicts. Taken and the Hive, led by ancient god Oryx, defended the ship against an assault from the Cabal’s Skyburner’s legion.

“What’s significant about the Dreadnaught’s return for Heresy is that it’s going to be changing, and we’re going to be fighting through it in ways we’ve yet to experience,” said Destiny 2’s narrative architect, Nikko Stevens. “The Dreadnaught has reawakened for the first time in almost a decade, spurring the Vanguard and Guardians across the system to take notice. We finally get to see what has become of the Dreadnaught years after Oryx was felled and its halls were left to corrode, without a Navigator.”

The expansion’s major storyline will be about pushing back against the corruption that has largely overtaken the ship. Guardians will engage in a new activity called The Nether, where they must disable the ship’s internal weapons and halt the spread of the Taken corruption. In a new gameplay mechanic, both players and enemies will be subject to boons that can randomly enhance or downgrade their combat effectiveness.

Heresy launches on Feb. 4, alongside a collaboration with Star Wars. This crossover will introduce themed gear, armor ornaments, accessories, emotes, and finishers inspired by some of the Empire’s army, including the Death Troopers and Imperial Guards. This follows Bungie’s former collaborations with The Witcher, Mass Effect, and Assassin’s Creed in previous seasons. The Star Wars cosmetic set won’t be available as an in-game reward and can only be obtained through premium currency.

Destiny 2 is currently facing several significant challenges that have led to a noticeable decline in its player base. As of December 2024, the game reached an all-time low of approximately 36,896 concurrent players on Steam, considering the all-time peak concurrent player count on Steam was 316,651 players.

One of the game’s key issues is the stagnation of seasonal content. Destiny 2’s seasonal model has become repetitive and lacks innovation, leading to decreased engagement. 

Persistent technical problems, including connectivity issues and in-game bugs, have also frustrated players and impacted the overall gaming experience. 

In response to these challenges, Bungie has announced plans to revitalize the game by introducing two medium-sized paid expansions annually, starting with “Codename: Apollo” in the Summer of 2025 and “Codename: Behemoth” in the Winter of 2025. Additionally, four major free updates are planned each year to enhance gameplay and introduce new events.