This Week At Bungie - 09/14/2017

This week at Bungie, we crowned a new Raid champion.

When the pinnacle activity in Destiny first goes live, a race for glory begins. Our community assembles to see which team will be first to ascend the mountain. Our team keeps an eye on one of their screens that is tuned to a streamer for whom they have high hopes. The design team that built the experience commandeers our theater and turns it into a VIP box.

What a finish!#Destiny2 #leviathanraid pic.twitter.com/C4DTYEJLY6

— Andrew Hopps (@kingkeoua) September 13, 2017

In the end, it was Clan 'The Legend Himself' that unmasked a Cabal emperor.

Congratulations to the winners. We salute you!

S_K_U_L_L_I_X
Dominickx-
Epicookiez
Lil_Noahhh
sc_Slayerage
Eavrr

RAID SPOILER ALERT

You don't need to be first to experience this triumph for yourself. The Leviathan Raid welcomes all challengers. If you don't have a dream team on your friends list, don't lose heart. As more Guardians learn the ways of the Pleasure Gardens, we'll open Guided Games so they can show you the way.

Standing Trial

The Raid is not the final test that we have to reveal. Destiny 2 still has new plateaus for you to scale.

Bring a Fireteam and your spirit of competition. You have a new ritual to learn.

Mutual Combat

With more than one full week of Player vs. Player action logged in our database, we're ready to assess the situation in our arena. Before we step into analysis, let's recap our goals.

The Destiny 2 Crucible has been designed with two distinct playlists to serve two distinct moods:

Quickplay
Matchmaking times are shorter, with less emphasis on skill. Fireteams with players of varying skill will have a better time. This is the fastest route to a game, but you may face opponents outside of your comfort zone.

Competitive
Matchmaking takes more time to introduce you to players that are closer to you in skill with a good connection. These matchmaking settings may take longer, but we feel that the quality of the gameplay experience will be worth the wait.

At this time, Quickplay is working as we had hoped. Matchmaking is putting Guardians through the paces. Players are meeting in battle for honor and bragging rights.

According to the finer minds on our team, the Competitive playlist needs some love. Too many players are getting stomped by opponents who grossly outmatch them. In order to match you properly with an opponent in your league, we need to apply your skill rating. There is a bug we need to fix to ensure that this is done properly. We are applying that fix right now.

In summary:

• If you've been having fun in Quickplay, nothing has changed. Game on.
• If you've been getting your ass kicked in Competitive, you'll have more of a fighting chance.
• If you've been kicking ass in Competitive, we're sending some worthier opponents your way.

The Crucible exists in a constant state of evolution. It adapts to the way you play, so this won't be the last update we apply to the state of combat. Get out there and trade some shots with your fellow players. Tell us all about your experiences.

The first Fireteam has made their way through Leviathan. Shaxx isn't far behind. Emperor's Respite is now available for all in the Crucible. pic.twitter.com/Cu7aV0EZb5

— Bungie (@Bungie) September 13, 2017

And now that we've seen where the emperor lives, we can enjoy some skirmishes there.

Clan Field Guide

Clans are live! The Guided Games Beta is live! Guardians are forming up into their own special teams and fighting to make a name for themselves so they can lure new recruits into their respective lairs.

As you work together to define your own culture of teamwork and friendship, we'd like to share some of what we've learned leading our own teams of gamers. First up, let's talk about identity.

How to write the ideal Clan profile.
So you've already picked the perfect Clan name and Clan tag. But what about the rest of your Clan identity? Seekers in Guided Games select a Clan to go with based on what you've shared about yourself, so your Clan profile should be designed to attract the ideal players you want to recruit for the activity.

Let's start with Clan Motto. It's your tagline and your rallying cry. Make it something memorable and leave potential recruits wanting to learn more. Some good examples from the wilds:

"Lone wolves banding together for the greater good"

"Pride in battle"

"All about that glimmer"

"Wow! That went WAY better than expected...."

"There is still so much left to burn...."

While the Motto is a chance to express what players should expect from you, the Mission Statement is where you spell out what you expect from them. It should answer some critical questions. What behavior is acceptable within the Clan? What expectations do you have for communication and participation? What activities do you focus on and what are the best times to play with your Clan? Here is a sample:

"We're a group of laid-back gamers, here to have fun and make some friends while shooting baddies in the face. Message our leaders for an invite and let's go get that sweet loot!"

"We're usually online in the evening West Coast time and like to hang out in chat while playing."

"We do all the weekly activities: Nightfall, Raid and Trials so Tuesday and Friday nights are busy!"

"Play to win, but have fun."

"Be excellent to each other."

With a detailed mission statement, you'll appeal to the kind of people you hope to meet. Communicate the important stuff and have fun with it.

Got it? Good luck. Wave those banners high!

Too Close For Comfort

Earlier this week, we were made aware that a graphical element on one of Destiny 2's armor pieces bore close resemblance to an internet meme that has been subsequently repurposed to represent hate and intolerance. This was completely unintentional. As an immediate response, we extended our planned maintenance window to remove the element from the armor piece itself, and will be following up next week with another patch to remove the same element from the UI icon and preview screens, scrubbing it from the game altogether.

Like many of you, we aren't satisfied with that reaction alone. As the team was busy patching the game, others were already asking the important questions - the very same questions we know many of you are asking now. Questions like these...

How did it happen?
The design in question was initially created as part of gear foundry explorations in June of 2015. Graphic designers routinely reference real world art, iconography, typeface, and other design elements to inform the choices they make. In this case, some of the reference imagery featured the simple mirrored chevron shapes found in the finished piece. Some graphic design that belongs to sports teams provided some inspiration as well, along with some primitive shapes and chevrons that were used to permeate our Guardian class iconography.

How did we miss this content in development?
Although the design wasn't emulative of the meme in question, the armor piece was eventually flagged by another team responsible for reviewing content for cultural, geographical, and other sensitive issues. Unfortunately, that review was conducted to explore whether or not we were comfortable with the connection to the original, innocuous "kek" internet meme. The more contemporary, vile derivation that has been repurposed by hate groups was not surfaced through this process, and therefore, the armor was approved for ship.

What steps are we taking to ensure that this won't happen again?
We are digging in to determine how we can more deeply vet our game content to shield us, and our community, from inappropriate imagery. Though we are still investigating our creative process in full, we know there was no degree of malicious intent from anyone on our team. That said, we do recognize that the design in question is close enough to warrant removal from the game. 

We want everyone to know their identity is welcome in our studio and in the worlds we create. This isn't merely a platitude, but an official pillar we hold ourselves, and our work to. It is also a clarion call for the type of people we want to bring into our studio to help us make better games.

We aren't asking you for the benefit of the doubt. We know we are judged by our actions. We want to thank the members of our community, and the press, for bringing this matter to our attention. We will always strive to make all players feel welcome in our worlds, to promote positive experiences, and to portray a bright and hopeful world in Destiny 2, and in every game world we create.

Annoying Produce

Whether it's fruits, vegetables, or any of the critters from the animal kingdom, your Destiny Player Support team is actively cataloguing the error codes you see when you play the game. They are committed to documenting them and eradicating them.

This is their report.

Destiny Update 1.0.1.3.
We are planning to release Destiny Update 1.0.1.3 within the next week. This will address some known issues, including the removal of harmful imagery from some armor within Destiny 2.

• Stay tuned to @BungieHelp for announcements of the expected availability for the Hotfix.
  
• Follow the Destiny Installation Guide for vital information concerning the installation of Updates and Hotfixes to your console.
  
• Patchnotes will be published to the Updates section of Bungie.net alongside the update.
  

Error code: Cabbage
For a localized help article, please see: https://www.bungie.net/en/Help/Article/46243
Error code CABBAGE may occur when router settings block communications to or from Destiny services. We are investigating the impact on various devices. To attempt to resolve this error when using a Technicolor/Thomson router, please proceed through the following steps.
PLEASE NOTE: Players may need to inspect the manual for their router to proceed through these steps, as some settings pages may have alternate naming conventions per manufacturer.

1. Connect your console directly to the router via wired or wi-fi connection.
   
   • Note: attempting to connect to Destiny through a router connected to an alternate router may lead to increased issues. Please attempt to connect to the router connected to your modem for best results.
     
   
   
2. From the router settings page, proceed from Home > Toolbox > Firewall.
   
   • Create a new Firewall level within your Router settings.
     
   
   
3. From the Router settings page, proceed from Home > Toolbox > Game & Application Sharing and configure the following settings:
   
   • Enable UPnP.
     
   • Disable "Extended Security".
     
   • Disable any "Assigned Games & Applications" settings.
     
   
   

PlayStation 4 Crash Investigation
We're continuing to investigate error code CE-34878-0 with our partners at PlayStation.

We're aware that some Destiny 2 users have seen crash issues on PS4 Pro. We and Bungie are working to resolve, thanks for your patience.

— Ask PlayStation (@AskPlayStation) September 11, 2017

At this time, we do not have any additional information. We are troubleshooting the issue internally, and attempting to identify specific causes for the issue. Until resolved, we advise disabling PlayStation 4 HDCP settings which may reduce or circumvent this error from impacting your console.
For a full list of issues that we are investigating, please see the #Help forum on Bungie.net. We will provide additional information via @BungieHelp when available.

High Lights

Like so many of the Guardians in his flock, your community manager will be a frequent enemy of Emperor Calus, but we grounded him for the opening race. We're not allowed to join the fight until a winner has been crowned. While you fought your way through an opulent palace, he was mining for a different type of gold on the Internet.

Cozmo: Welcome to another edition of Movie of the Week. With Trials about to go live, we're getting into the spirit of competition. Here are some highlights and hilarious clips of Guardians from the Crucible.

Movie of the Week: Clutch


Honorable Mention: 3 Birds 1 Fusion Rifle


Honorable Mention: Dance Fail


Winners and Honorable Mentions will receive their Emblem as soon we add it to the game in a future update. If you would like a shot at seeing your video here, submit it to the Creations page. 

Thank you all for the spirit you've brought to the world of Destiny 2. This past week has been amazing and humbling. We are loving this new adventure with you. Sure, we see the world of the game while we're building it, but it never feels real to us until you show up and make if feel alive.

To date, the high watermark for the total number of players online at the same moment, battling aliens and making the world safe, is over 1.3 Million. That blows our minds. You honor us with your hunger for action - and loot.

We hope you're enjoying the new adventure as much as we are. 

I need to be sleeping more than I am.

DeeJ, out.