Destiny 2 on Battle.net is free, for keeps, until November 18

If you've been curious about Destiny 2, but not quite curious enough to throw money at it, Activision's got some good news: From today until November 18, it's making the game free, for keeps, for all Battle.net users. 

"We know Destiny players that want to play on PC expect an amazing experience, whether it’s on their own or with their friends—so, our paramount concern was to keep the discerning requirements of the PC community in mind, and welcoming the Battle.net and Bungie PC communities together," Destiny 2: Forsaken game director Steve Cotton said. "With this gift we look forward to seeing new Guardians in our universe." 

If you're a new Battle.net user you'll need to enable Blizzard SMS Protect before claiming the game. Existing Destiny 2 players on PC will get an exclusive one-year anniversary emblem that will be available in December. New Destiny 2 players will also have the opportunity to try Forsaken's "Gambit" multiplayer mode during a Gambit Free Weekend that will run November 9-11. And on a related note, don't forget that the Destiny 2: Forsaken expansion, which along with adding the Gambit mode also dramatically overhauls the core game, now includes all previously released DLC.    

If I'm being cynical, it's an aggressive way to get more PC gamers to download or log into Battle.net, but we can't complain about being the recipient of a big-budget game for zero dollars. Full details are available at destinythegame.com

Andy Chalk

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.