Bungie developer video dives into the reasons for Destiny 2's 'Go Fast' update

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The Destiny 2 1.1.4 update coming tomorrow will rain buffs upon us, as we noted earlier this month: Faster Crucible respawns, more accessible power ammo, quicker ability cooldowns, and of course upgraded guns—because at the end of the day, it's all about the firepower. In a video released ahead of that update, design lead Josh Hamrick talked a bit about why the studio is taking the game in this direction.

Hamrick summed up the approach by explaining how the team picked out a few weapons that are "kind of hot—probably too hot for D2," as he put it. But instead of nerfing them, which is what would have happened in the original Destiny, the plan now is to "bring everything else to them."

"We've also learned the lesson of, 'Don't sand the coolness down'," Hamrick says. "Leave the jagged spikes of personality in there."

As the "Go Faster" moniker suggests, speed is at the core of the update, which Hamrick says changes the flow of matches and enables "ridiculous plays."

"'Hero moments' are back," Hamrick says. "With the power weapon changes and speed boosts, like they're moving at a million miles an hour and jumping through the air and pulling off headshots—we're gonna see some crazy shit."

It sounds promising, although truth be told I have no complaints with Crucible combat as it stands—and I worry just a tiny bit that any meaningful increase in speed will leave my old bones in the dust. But I also really like the sideways reference to Prometheus Lens near the end of the video, a "broken-as-hell gun" that Bungie deftly turned into a PR coup late last year. At this point (and as Tim recommended in February), "What's the worst that could happen?" is not a terrible approach to take. Who knows? It might pay off.

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Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.