With just days until the release of Destiny 2: Forsaken, much of the talk surrounding the upcoming expansion is the introduction to the newest multiplayer mode, Gambit. With the new competitive mode so close to release, the community has so many questions about Gambit’s premise Putting long time fans of the sci-fi online shooter into unfamiliar territory can bring with it a ton of risk, especially given the push for a free trial period starting today. Thankfully, the heads of the team behind the science fiction shooter’s newest mode have Guardians covered, by explaining the scoring system, how to work as a team, and the best strategies to incorporate in order to come out on top in Gambit.
The recent breakdown on Destiny 2’s Gambit mode comes from the project’s initial design lead, Lars Bakken, and current design lead, Robbie Stevens. While there have been numerous changes to the original vision of the online feature, both Bakken and Stevens have shifted production to develop the new hybrid-style of gameplay we expect to see.
The Rules
Gambit is Destiny 2’s first ever PvEvP mode, pitting two teams of four against each other in unusual new ways. Each team is dropped into separate arenas and tasked with trying to take out various enemies, which in turn drop an item called motes. Players must then collect motes and head to a giant cylinder in the middle of their respective arena in order to bank points for their team.
Once a team reaches 75 points, a boss will spawn, which that team must then defeat. The first team to defeat their boss wins the round, with the match being played in a best-of-three rounds format. Gathering a higher number of motes does bring with it a greater risk factor, as dying in any capacity will cause all motes on one’s character to disappear completely.
How to Work as a Team
Gathering motes doesn’t just rack up points for each team, however. Players can actually trigger enemies called blockers to spawn in the opposing team’s arena whenever they deposit their motes in quantities of five, 10, or 15, with each tier spawning a Taken Phalanx, Taken Knight, or a Taken Ogre, respectively.
Blockers will then prevent the opposing team from being able to deposit their motes until they’ve been defeated. This feature adds a new layer to both strategy and teamwork, according to both Bakken and Stevens. If a teammate can trigger blockers to spawn quickly, than it’s better to let that player collect motes first before anyone else does.
Strategy and Preparation
While the majority of the match is spent focusing on collecting motes from downed enemies, there are a few times during each match where players have the opportunity to invade their opponent’s arena. Whenever a team’s portal is activated, they can then choose when to make the jump over to the other side and take the fight to the other team.
Both Bakken and Stevens were quick to make note of the risks a strategy like this entails, such as not trying to jump to the opposing side while holding a large number of motes, and even checking ammo counts due to the constant PvE fights ensuing. A little prep work may also be needed outside of Gambit before trying to test the waters in the new competitive mode, as level advantages for players will be active. Teams can only activate an invasion when their mote count reaches 25, 50, or may do so an unlimited number of times if the opposing team has already spawned their final Primeval boss.
There’s a lot for players to become accustomed to when the final version of Gambit goes live upon the release of Destiny 2: Forsaken. Thankfully, Bungie is offering a free 24 hour trial period for the mode starting this weekend.
For those who still haven’t jumped into the world of Destiny 2 yet, the game was just recently announced as one of the free PS Plus games this month. It’s available now before the rest of the lineup of free titles goes live this Tuesday.
Destiny 2: Forsaken launches on September 4th for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.
Source: Polygon
