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On March 4, Bungie revealed the Rite of the Nine coming to Destiny 2 later this Episode. The event features three older dungeons with updated loot and multiple difficulty modes, including a learning Explore mode for Guardians who have never ventured into the dungeon.
Destiny 2‘s endgame has notoriously been inaccessible, especially if you’re a solo player who doesn’t have a dedicated group to run dungeons and raids. Using an LFG when you don’t know anything can be intimidating, and that’s just human nature. The Rite of the Nine event will temporarily make things easier for new players, with the Explore mode that teaches ins and outs of three dungeons on a weekly rotation: Prophecy, Spire of the Watcher, and Ghosts of the Deep.
The Explore mode has tooltips around the encounters explaining the mechanics and markers to help you navigate rooms. In the opening encounter of the Spire of the Watcher, for example, a tooltip above the wires says you need to locate the starting node and shoot it with the Arctritian buff, with markers showing the nodes’ locations.
Other improvements include the removal of wipes/Darkness phases and shorter respawn timers of only five seconds. One of the biggest challenges if you play a regular dungeon solo is, of course, staying alive, as dying means starting the encounter over. The Explore mode promises a perfect way to do the dungeon without worrying about death.
My only gripe with this mode is that it’s limited to three dungeons and is limited-time. After the Rite of the Nine event ends, the Explore mode will likely leave, which is the last thing we need right now. While the higher difficulty modes and related loot may go away (although I’d love for the base weapons to stay, too), Explore mode is what newer players need to keep engaging with the endgame.
As pointed out by Destiny 2 players on Reddit, the Explore mode may benefit an even wider audience than just new players. “Experienced groups could practice damage strats and test new gear and perks. Those going for solo-flawless runs could use it as a means to practice in a low stakes environment. Speedrunners could practice movement tech and skips without worrying about other players messing them up,” one player wrote.
I’d love for Bungie to eventually introduce Explore mode to each of the dungeons in Destiny 2, even to the older ones, like Shattered Throne. Yes, you can breeze through Shattered Throne solo with closed eyes, but some don’t know that. Newer dungeons, including Warlord’s Ruin and Sundered Doctrine, are also incredible experiences that I think every player should be able to try out.
The Explore mode might be harder to implement for raids, as those feature more advanced mechanics involving multiple players. But even a free-roam mode with tooltips to at least give a theoretical idea of what’s happening in the encounter would go miles for new Guardians.
In the meantime, if you’re looking forward to doing any of the three dungeons mentioned above, get ready for the Rite of the Nine event coming to Destiny 2 during Act Three of Heresy, which begins on April 1.
