We recently had an opportunity to dive head first into Destiny’s 2 first expansion, Curse of Osiris. Bungie, well-known for being secretive and careful about how they choose to release information, put a lot of rules on when and what we can reveal about our time with the DLC. So we’re going to dump everything we can for today, and we’ll share more once we’re able. Enjoy!
Curse of Osiris’ Content
While we did get to check out some non-campaign related content that we can’t discuss today, the bulk of our play time was playing through the story. The campaign’s length is more or less similar to what was seen in the other two smaller DLC expansions from the original Destiny (The Dark Below, and House of Wolves). Depending on whether you take your time, or blast through as quickly as possible, you can finish the story (again, just the missions, not including any other content not yet revealed that we can’t discuss yet), in about two to four hours. Unlike The Dark Below and House of Wolves which featured some detours from the main missions through content like strikes and other side-objectives, the Curse of Osiris campaign is more linear and focused on the story.
This is a reflection of Bungie’s commitment to improve the story content of Destiny 2. While it’s not going to be nominated for any “Best Story” award categories anytime soon, it’s certainly an improvement over the original, and genuinely interesting and enjoyable. To-date, a lot of the game’s far more interesting lore has been hidden away, but Curse of Osiris unleashes arguably one of the most interesting sections, the “greatest warlock” Osiris and the current state of Mercury, in an extremely effective way.
Mercury & Lore
We’ve written before about how cool Mercury would be as a locale, and Curse of Osiris embraces a lot of what made the setting appealing from a lore standpoint while tying the mysterious Osiris character into the mix. Osiris’ name isn’t an accident, and Curse of Osiris appears to have at least been lightly influenced by Ancient Egypt, a period of human history shrouded in mystery. In fact, during a Q&A with Twinfinite and other outlets, Bungie mentioned that the theme of Mercury and Curse of Osiris is “mystery.” We can’t discuss Mercury in detail just yet, but the “mystery” aesthetic Bungie is going for, definitely lands. You’ll want to explore every nook and cranny, but you’ll also encounter a lot of resistance from some very angry Vex, making the area very dangerous.
The campaign missions bounce you between Mercury and other pre-existing locations, but exploring Mercury is obviously the highlight. The Vex have been quietly up to no good on Mercury for a while now, and their actions have finally bubbled up to the surface (both figuratively and literally) to a point where Osiris can’t keep it contained any longer on his own. So he sends his ghost, Sagira, away to get help.
Story and Characters
Curse of Osiris sees characters, both new and old, get heavy screen time. Although the story is centered around Osiris’ efforts to save the world and such, Sagira is the real star. Sagira is your guide to understanding Osiris’ mindset both currently, and his actions from the past. Osiris was, at least, extremely cocky and outspoken, and his ideals eventually got him thrown out of the Tower. His personality hasn’t completely morphed, but does seem to be willing to pick his battles better, at least when he needs help like he does throughout the campaign of Curse of Osiris. And, of course, you’ll get to know Sagira by spending time with her, and get some insight onto what other people’s ghosts are like. Not all ghosts are created equal in the world Destiny 2.
As the story unravels, Sagira will walk you through what’s going on, but you’re not alone with her. You’ll have help from Ikora Ray, the Tower’s head honcho Warlock Vanguard and former Osiris pupil. It’s been a while since the two of them have spent any time together, and throughout the campaign they will work through their issues. They will try to let go of grudges and outdated perceptions of each other.
Finally, there’s our old pal Brother Vance. As you might imagine, he’s SUPER hyped about the potential of meeting his idol for the first time, but first he needs to help make sure Osiris, and everyone else for that matter, doesn’t get killed by the Vex and stuff. We can’t talk about the Lighthouse much right now, but Brother Vance is definitely rolling out the red carpet hoping that Osiris decides to stop by for a cup of coffee or something.
The bulk of the campaign takes place in the Infinite Forest, a new location within Mercury. We’re not allowed to discuss the Infinite Forest in detail just yet, but we’ll say this about it: It’s Vex Disney World essentially. It’s a place where the Vex can test infinite realities and possibilities. Probably super fun for the Vex and anyone else with an affinity for murder and ripping down anything the races of Earth achieve, but an absolute nightmare for guardians that are trying to traverse it.
More information will be revealed at today’s live stream, so give that a look after its conclusion. Destiny 2: Curse of Osiris will be out on Dec. 5.
