Is Destiny: Rising worth a play to get your Destiny fix?

• Destiny: Rising now has the strange distinction of being the only supported Destiny game
• But is it worth a go if you're hungry for more Destiny?
• I took a crack at it as a first-time player to see how it holds up

By now, fans have had almost a month to digest the news that Destiny 2 is ending. The series, which was supposed to be Bungie’s post-Halo flagship, has now effectively stalled, and it remains to be seen whether it’s truly dead in the water. But if you do want to keep playing, there is another option: Destiny: Rising on iOS and Android!

Translating the classic Destiny looter-shooter format to third-person, Destiny: Rising serves as both a prequel and alternate universe retelling of the events leading up to the original Destiny duology. I was never a Destiny player myself, but I thought it’d be worth finally taking a look and then giving my two cents on whether it’s worth a go.

Same place, different Traveler

At its core, Destiny: Rising is similar to many other ARPGs out there, but with a greater focus on shooting mechanics. You play as a Lightbearer, a chosen hero accompanied by an AI called a Ghost that can resurrect you when you die. From there, it’s your duty to head out on adventures against the Fallen, an alien race that attacked Earth and brought it crashing down from its Golden Age.

The world of Destiny is perhaps its strongest aspect here, as it tends to immerse you much quicker into the standard battle of good versus evil. And as hokey as they may be, the Fallen, Lightbearers and other kooky terms are a little easier to digest than the world-salad that other ARPGs use.

However, where Destiny: Rising falters is in its lack of anything to really stand out from other entries in the ARPG genre. And it’s even lacking in some areas. You head through a tutorial, find your way to the hub city and from there head out on various missions. It’ll be familiar to fans of Destiny, but lacks that real open-world exploration that others such as Genshin Impact offer.

Standing out from the crowd

But for all the similarities that Destiny: Rising has to other third-person ARPGs, it stands out from them in many ways too. Character and world design is a stark contrast to the innumerable anime-inspired franchises out there, and the music too is similarly comprised of soaring orchestral scores to really sell the grand science-fantasy action.

I think this is what makes Destiny: Rising stand out the most. While there’s nothing wrong with anime-style graphics, it does get a bit samey after a while. But the mixture of classic tactical elements as well as fantasy armour and swords really sells how different the Destiny universe is.

Teething problems

Now, personally speaking, I probably wouldn't go back to Destiny: Rising. But that's only because I found the controls quite irksome. However, that's very much a me problem and one reason I've never been fond of shooters or third-person adventure games on mobile, as touchscreen controls tend to be quite awkward for me.

If you can adapt to that, then you're off to the races. And you'll find an interesting mixture of mechanics where special attacks pair well with the usual shooting mechanics and offer an interesting alternative to the more melee-heavy ARPGs out there.

Is it worth playing?

So, is Destiny: Rising a suitable alternative to Destiny 2? No, not really. But then that’s only natural because it is, at its core, a game designed for mobile. There are no first-person elements, and various other mechanics most would consider a core part of the experience are tweaked to better fit the new format.

However, I do think that Destiny: Rising is worth playing if you’re hungry for more action set in Bungie’s world. It explores a new perspective on the Destiny universe, and delivers much of the same fast-paced shooter action that you’ve come to expect.

Destiny 3 it may not be, but Destiny: Rising stands as a very decent ARPG on its own. And for fans of the series, it’s the best (and soon-to-be only) way to experience the franchise if you’re on mobile. Given that, like many mobile games, it's also free to play, it could be well worth sinking some time into to see if it's your thing!

If you're looking for other options to play if you enjoy scratching that itchy trigger finger, then you needn't fret. Why not check out our list of the best shooters on iOS for some of our top picks.