Bungie Weekly Update - Feb 5 at 8:28:49 PM

This week at Bungie, we moved a little closer to the next update for Destiny.

If you study the paths we travel to evolve your playground, a numeric pattern emerges. 1.1.1 is what we call this next batch of content and code. That places it somewhere between the last expansion (1.1) and the next expansion (1.2). As promised last week, when we forecast some much-anticipated heavy ammo fixes, it's scheduled to make its way from our servers to your console before the end of February.

Between now and the end of this month, we're hard at work making sure that these changes won't wreak cataclysmic havoc on the game - like changing your Guardians into Tower sweeper bots, or worse. That gives us some time to talk about what else you'll be downloading. The conversation continues today.

Prepare your favorite snack and have a seat. We'd like to talk to you about your arsenal of weapons!

In Sheep's Clothing

"Not so fast," you say. "What about that 'next expansion' you mentioned?"

Fair enough. Since we've started throwing around soft deadlines for game updates, we might as well set your expectations that Destiny Expansion II: The House of Wolves will be released sometime in the second quarter of this year. If you're not used to people saying things like "Q2" when they're measuring time, just rip your annual calendar into four equal parts and scrutinize the second piece. Sometime within those three months (April, May, and June), we'll have a new adventure to embark upon with you.

We're keeping all other details under wraps for now. There is a special team here that's dedicated to creating some new ways for you to play Destiny. They're also making the game you know a better reflection of what we've learned about you since you've started playing. While they do their thing, we'll walk the fine line between making you a part of the process and providing them with a safe place to explore possibilities and do their best work.

The Bungie Blog is your finest source of guaranteed Destiny news. Enjoy the speculation and discussion that makes an Internet community fun, but stay tuned here so we can go on record about what awaits you as "Q2" draws nearer.

And on a long enough timeline, we'll also talk about what we're planning for this Fall.

Keep That Thing Oiled

Can we talk about those weapons now? Because we have a problem: 

Your Pulse Rifle really needs some love.

Statistics don't lie. Neither do you. Just yesterday, to enlist you in helping us prove this point in advance, we poked the Internet bear. We asked the question: "What is your favorite Pulse Rifle in Destiny?" The general consensus is still rolling in.

@Bungie don't use em.

— SpaceCityGamer (@LostInSpaceCity) February 4, 2015

@Bungie None of them are good though...

— William (@WilliamCL57) February 4, 2015

@Bungie Is that a trick question?

— Mega (@MegaSharpedoGod) February 4, 2015

Thanks for playing along, Mega. That was a trick question. The answer (and the solution) lies in the Sandbox Update that we're also packing into 1.1.1.

Today, we're serving up some weapon tuning philosophy, prepared by Sandbox Designer Jon Weisnewski. He's a weapons specialist at Bungie - one member of a team that seeks to find balance in the chaos. Your guns are on his workbench, and he's excited to share with you some thoughts from his process.

Click this link to learn more about how we're keeping a promise we made prior to launch - that Destiny would be a place of diverse fighting styles, where everyone would have a chance to be powerful in different ways. If you like Pulse Rifles, help is on the way. If you're like me, and you think you can solve every problem with your trusty Suros Regime? Well, we're about to be challenged in some new and exciting ways.

Over to you, Jon. Seriously, Guardians. Click this link!

Service Guarantees Citizenship

To keep the Tower packed with willing souls to protect the City, the Destiny Operations Center maintains its own overwatch. They serve you to keep you fighting. Here is their weekly report:

On Monday, players received the TOAD error, preventing some players from signing in. They were able to log in later that same day. Xbox One players experienced an error on Tuesday that kept them from connecting to Destiny servers, which later subsided. We are continuing to investigate these issues as they decline over time.

During these times when Destiny is experiencing issues, it is best to completely exit Destiny and re-launch the game to see if the errors subside before further troubleshooting.

To provide information on the state of the game, we display a red banner across our Bungie.net forums (currently browser only) and communicate via @BungieHelp. In the future, we hope to provide the same red banner status updates on the mobile platform.

Do you want to know more?

When A Plan Comes Together

Last week, we issued a new challenge: Share with us your best movies to become a filmmaking legend, and maybe even earn an emblem to burnish your username in the game.

Within moments, the winning entry had us laughing in ways that only '80s pop-culture can. In recognition of speed, originality, and an appreciation for must-see TV from a Golden Age, we give you the #DestinyMOTW.

@Bungie If no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you should hire... The Raid Team. https://t.co/sMiwe0gz8s #DestinyMOTW

— This Side Up (@ThisSideUpYT) January 30, 2015

The Raid Team was not alone. Many of you rallied to the hashtag.

Honorable Mention

@Bungie https://t.co/tOAooWtuwn #DestinyMOTW.

— OkAjiS (@JimPeressutti) February 2, 2015

And the most Honorable Mention of all...
Awesome movies created by the Bungie community are not a new thing. We've all been enjoying them for years. 

Our dear friends at Rooster Teeth lost a member of their family this week. Instead of sending flowers, they told us to do something creative. It has always been fascinating when we can share in the act of creation with you. That video was the vehicle that brought Monty Oum to the attention of so many of us. He will be missed, but his work will leave a lasting impression for a long time.

To all the part-time dreamers out there, we thank you for using our games to express yourselves.