I've yet to finish Destiny 2 and it's quite clear to see that this persistent world is one I will routinely come back to.

This is what I ultimately imagined what would happen with the first game. I desperately wanted to obsess over that game in its first waking days and over the months to come until The Dark Below and House of Wolves. That wouldn't happen. For me, the game felt so unrefined as a concept. It felt as if I was inconveniencing the game by not committing hour after hour to The Grind. It wore me out, my Guardian was going nowhere, and all my good deeds and accomplishments garnered few, if any substantial rewards. It didn't matter if I had killed hundreds and thousands of AI in the Cosmodrome. It didn't matter if I had outmatched superior players in the Crucible, leading my team to victory and earning the coveted top spot on the leaderboard. Fuck it.

Destiny did little to make things accessible in its infancy. I felt as if it was some secret knowing how to manipulate marks, engrams, shards, and all manner of thingy majigers. Raids gave off an elite and exclusive vibe that I couldn't thrive in. I didn't have the time. I just didn't care. Hell, it made me consider if my fandom for Bungie was exclusive to their stewardship of Halo alone.

Coming back to The Taken King and Rise of Iron, I noticed a marked improvement in what this game was trying to achieve. I felt like I was getting better, I was treated to a warm welcome as a casual fan, and made significant progress. So, I was going to stick with it. I'd see what Bungie had in store for me next.

I joined DBO's Clan on PlayStation 4 yesterday. This simple act was a remarkably joyous occasion as weird as that sounds. Y'all are a wonderful, helpful, and open bunch to spend time with. That wasn't my hang up. I wasn't going to come back to this community once more if I didn't absolutely adore Destiny 2.

I took my time buying this game; all its rave reviews and acclaim from throughout the community convinced me Bungie had hit its stride again. I've taken my time playing it. A couple days will pass before I can log back in to continue my adventures. Truth be told, I've barely made a dent in the game's story missions. It's not that The Red War isn't compelling, I'm just satisfied with screwing around, cruising across the map, and jumping from one Public Event to the next. The Grind this time around is accommodating of players who can only commit a few hours here and there each week. Achieving Level 20 took me some time and still I felt rewarded in my guns, in my gear, and in my accumulation of currency. In Destiny 2 I bathe in a surplus of currency that I scrounged over in the first game. I routinely hang onto Rare scout rifles that are well past their prime. They still work, they still feel like a viable extension of your Guardian's martial intentions. They're hanging on despite my growing arsenal of Legendary and now Exotic armaments.

Yesterday I found my first Legendary and Exotic engrams out on patrol, all within a matter of minutes. Graviton Lance was my first acquisition through engrams and I adore it so much. I'm excited to happen upon its totally fabulous ornament, whenever that may be. It's loot like this that makes me feel like a hyper-lethal vector and not a mere bystander like I was before. Something Destiny 2 does wonderfully is building up the player. It empowers us through insurmountable odds. My Guardian has a story. She feels like a unique quantity as if she's a mythical Exotic piece of loot. It's glorious!

I mean, look at this girl. That's one fulfilled and motivated Hunter thrilled to overcome an Olympus Mons-sized challenge. She's all mine and I'm so proud of her.