Destiny 2 is Leaving Xbox Game Pass so all the players of the Xbox platform will need to buy expansions. Bungie and Microsoft are best friends but, now this removal point to something else. It stands to reason that Destiny 2 did not sell well on Xbox due to its availability on the Game Pass. Bungie is gearing up for the release of The Witch Queen next year. It was already confirmed that The Witch Queen would not be available on the Game Pass. So what does this mean for the future of Destiny 2 on Game Pass? There are some things that we need to discuss before concluding.
The Removal of Beyond Light
One of the major things that Beyond Light brought to the game was the Stasis sub-class. As long as you have the Beyond Light expansion, you can use the Stasis sub-class. When you lose the Beyond Light expansion, you will lose access to the Stasis sub-class. However, you will retain all the exotics and everything else that you have gotten from the expansion. This has been confirmed by players who cancel their Game Pass subscription. Destiny 2 is Leaving Xbox Game Pass, players will only lose access to Stasis class and all the content that the expansions have. All the items that they have gotten from Beyond Light will remain.
Expansions up until Beyond Light would remain on Game Pass PC. So only the console and cloud version of Game Pass is losing the complete Destiny 2 experience. If players want to keep playing full Destiny 2, they would need to purchase it. Players interested in the story, exotics, and equipment of the expansions don’t have to buy again. They will get to keep all of that and, they have already experienced the story.
Since the complete edition of Destiny 2 was added, with the release of Beyond Light. Hardcore old Destiny 2 players who are Game Pass subscribers might already have bought all the expansions released before Beyond Light. So, whether a player wants to buy all the expansions also depends on their interest in the game.
Content Vault
It is clear that Bungie wants to remove all the older content. They have removed a lot from the base game of Destiny 2. The Destiny 2 base game (free version) is only a husk of its former self. Most of the content has been removed and, it only offers a couple of missions in strikes. It is no surprise that developers are going to keep on removing content from the game. Even if you have bought a DLC, developers will remove it when the time comes.
Bungie wants to keep the storage of the game in check. Bungie wants to remove older content to make matchmaking easier. Developers could just give the choice of selective download but I guess they might have an ulterior motive. It is a live service game after all, so tricks from developers are expected. Destiny 2 is Leaving Xbox Game Pass and, it was clear from day one.
Content Removal
Forsaken is also being removed from the game. Even if you have purchased it then it will still be removed for you. Forsaken is the first paid DLC being removed from the game since Destiny became free-to-play. Before going to Vault it will become free in December 2021. However, with the release of The Witch Queen, Forsaken will be removed from the games. So players will have three months to experience all that it offers before it leaves the game. Tangled Shore destination is will be vaulted but some of the Forsaken content will remain.
Shadowkeep is safe for now but the way things are going it could leave the game as well. With the release of another expansion after The Witch Queen, Shadowkeep could also leave the game. Destiny 2 is Leaving Xbox Game Pass and, players should not rely on the game subscription service for it in the future.
Live Service Game on Game Pass
A live service game does not make sense on a video game subscription service. I have explained it in detail in the video game subscription article. If a player subscribes to a game subscription service such as Game Pass for a game as a service then the game will become more expensive in the long run. It costs $120 to keep Game Pass Ultimate for a year. On sale, you can buy all the Destiny 2 has to offer for less than half of that amount.
There are not a lot of people who would use a game subscription service of a single live service game. Everyone knew that Destiny 2 was going to leave Game Pass eventually. This is how game subscription services work. So, Destiny 2 is Leaving Xbox Game Pass is not a surprising development. If you are interested in a live service game and know that it will get updates for a long time, then buying it is the only sane choice.
