Watch the first story mission from Destiny 2: Forsaken

VIDEO: Prison Break, the opening mission for Destiny 2's Forsaken DLC. 

Destiny 2's Forsaken DLC stars eight Scorn Barons who bust out of the Prison of Elders with help from the Awoken prince Uldren Sov, killing beloved Vanguard leader Cayde-6 in the process. The campaign kicks off right before Cayde's death with a prison riot, during which you fight alongside Cayde and Awoken ally Petra Venj to help quell the inmates of the Prison of Elders and find the source, and purpose, of the riot. 

Recently, Bungie brought me up to its Seattle studio to play Forsaken's first mission, Prison Break. I couldn't include the many cutscenes in this mission for spoiler reasons, but if you've been keeping up with Destiny 2 news, you've seen the big ones already. 

Bear in mind, I was only able to play on PS4. I've gotten used to the frame rate and FOV of PC, not to mention playing with a mouse and keyboard, so going back to PS4 was a bit of a shock—you can actually see me reel from the game's limited FOV and the recoil of my auto rifle at the start of the video. Nevertheless, Prison Break is a fun introduction to the stakes and themes of Forsaken, and a fitting last hurrah for Cayde. 

Fighting alongside the Vanguard leaders is an experience I've wanted from Destiny 2 from the get-go, so I enjoyed teaming up with Cayde to clean up the prison. I like the chaotic atmosphere of the level, too, with Hive and Cabal and Fallen fighting each other all over the place. It feels like a 'Greatest Hits' edition of the dudes we've been shooting for the past year before the the real enemies, the Scorn, are introduced in the second half of the level.

The Scorn are mutated Fallen who collectively serve as the primary antagonists of Forsaken. I met three varieties of Scorn in Prison Break: Ravagers, who rush you brandishing flaming flails; Raiders, who can turn to smoke to move around the battlefield; and Screebs, who crawl disturbingly quickly and explode when they get close. Screebs are very similar to the Hive's explosive Thrall, but Ravagers and Raiders feel refreshingly new, and you have to fight them in different ways. 

I especially like how you crit Ravagers by shooting their flails, not their heads. When you've got crowds of Scorn coming at you, Ravagers prevent you from idly mowing groups down by spraying at head height. It's worth shooting their flails, too, seeing as how they explode for a lot of AoE damage after just a few shots. Raiders, meanwhile, are exceptionally mobile and completely immune while in their smoke form, which makes them tough to pin down. 

I'll let the rest of the video speak for itself. Suffice it to say, I liked Prison Break as an intro for Destiny 2's biggest (and hopefully best) DLC yet. It establishes the story's villains and the player's motivations more effectively and efficiently than past DLCs, but it leaves enough questions unanswered to propel you forward.

We'll have more on Destiny 2: Forsaken ahead of, and after, its release on Tuesday, September 4.