Destiny 2 was delayed on PC to ‘get it right,’ Bungie says

Earlier this week, Activision and Bungie announced a release date for the Windows PC version of Destiny 2, confirming that the PC release would lag behind its console counterparts by about seven weeks.

Destiny 2’s PC release was pushed to Oct. 24, developers Bungie and Vicarious Visions say, in an attempt to satisfy the PC gaming audience.

“The honest truth is we want it to land super solid,” Vicarious Visions’ Thomas Gawrys told Polygon in an interview at E3 today. “We want to meet the expectations of PC gamers — they have expectations for what they want and we want to make sure we hit as many of those as we can.”

“It really is as simple as ‘we want to get it right,’” said Bungie’s David Shaw. “That’s the reason there was no PC version of Destiny 1 is because we didn’t feel we could do it in a way that could honor the PC gamer [and] would really nail it. With Destiny 2, we had the team, we had the talent, we found great partners in [Vicarious Visions]. One more extension of being able to do it right is that we needed that extra bit of time.”

The Windows PC version of Destiny 2 is being developed with full keyboard and mouse support, with custom key mapping; adjustable field of view settings; 21:9 monitor support; and resolution up to 3840x2160. Its frame rate will be uncapped.

PC gamers will get access to the PC version’s beta sometime in August, Activision and Bungie announced this week. Shaw described the beta as “a true beta,” not a marketing tactic.

“We want to learn as much as we can,” Shaw said. “We want to give people the opportunity to try and break our stuff.”

Shaw and Gawrys said that the Windows PC version of Destiny 2 won’t support mods, officially. And in an attempt to crack down on hackers and cheaters, Bungie said it’s doing everything it can with the help of a dedicated team — as well as Activision’s central tech and Blizzard’s Battle.net service — to keep the playing field level. Both developers noted that the fight against hacks and cheats is “a marathon,” explaining that the studios will continue to clamp down on hacks on PC.

What neither developer would confirm is whether there would be any way to carry saves or characters across PC and console.

“It’s a fantastic idea, but it’s not a decision we can make on our own,” Shaw said, adding that they hear that request from many Destiny players. “We agree it’d be super cool.

“We hear it, we get it and, man, I’d love to spend a bunch of time on it ... but it’s a challenge...”