Destiny 2fans have been debating the upcoming changes to swords that developer Bungie previewed would be coming in the sandbox update that accompanies Season 10. One of the biggest complaints about the changes is that they will absolutely change their use for speedrunning, whichdeals a massive blow to theDestiny 2speedrunning communitythat has used the exotic sword Worldline Zero to Warlock skate through activities and post super fast completion times.
But beyond the speedrunning issue, the sword changes are a bit of a strange move, at least judging by the changes that Bungie has divulged so far. There could be more to these changes, but from the information available, swords are going to be put in a bit of a strange spot inDestiny 2that may not help increase their use very much, which seems to be the very purpose of this redesign.
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More attention put on making swords more relevant isDestiny 2is certainly welcome. Swords have changed very little sincetheir debut back in The Taken KinginDestiny 1, and they have remained virtually unchanged over their entire lifespan ofDestiny 2. But it is unclear exactly what these changes mean for swords and what Bungie hopes to specifically accomplish with them.
Swords have always been CQC power weapons. InDestiny 2, that has pretty much meant running up close and using the heavy attack to deal massive damage in one hit. A heavy attack is usually enough to take down a major enemy in one or two swings, and as a result, the light attacks are not that useful in taking down standard red-bar enemies that can be chewed through easily with primary weapons. There really is no reason to use up precious heavy ammo to dowhat primary weapons can do just as wellor better.
While the sword changes look to make sword gameplay more enticing, they make it more confusing as to what the role ofswords will be inDestiny 2. Guarding will no longer consume ammo and will instead consume the new energy bar that takes the place of the melee energy slot in the UI when holding a sword. But it sounds like light and heavy attacks also use up sword energy. And the crux of it is that “heavy attacks now consume sword energy” with the assumption that consume means completely. Further, “the [heavy] attack is stronger when you have full energy, and weaker when you don’t.”
It is hard to know without testing these changes and seeing how heavy attack damage is affected by differing levels of the energy bar, but if heavy attacks are not getting an accompanying buff to their damage at full charge along with these changes to how the heavy attack works, then there is no reason for any player to want to perform a heavy attack with anything less than full sword energy, which then means there is no reason to guard or use light attacks that will drain that bar below full. That means thatswordsare basically left in the exact same spot as they are now—swap to them with full energy and perform a heavy attack and then switch off again.
If there is one enduring truth aboutDestinyplayers, it is that they will find the most effective,highest damage weaponsand abilities in the game and use those things—and only those things. And swords are in a place where they need to compete with shotguns, which use Special ammo and not heavy ammo so they are useable more often. Plus they have to compete for the heavy weapon slot, and there are so many top-tier options in that weapon slot that are better than swords.
So although these changes look like they will indeed make sword gameplay more interesting—with different guard styles, (hopefully) perks that differentiate sword types, looping light attacks, and more—swords still will need to prove that they are even worth using in the first place. And, unfortunately, the changes detailed so far don’t seem to prove that they are. But, of course, players will decide for themselves when these changes go live with the launch ofSeason of the Worthyon May 24, 2025.
Destiny 2is available now for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
