Destiny 2 Patch Notes Explain How Update 2.0.5 Makes Getting The Best Loot Less Annoying

It's the Destiny 2 patch we've been waiting for. The October 30 patch for the game, which dropped alongside the weekly reset, brings a load of quality-of-life improvements to Destiny 2, including a handful that should make getting the best loot in the game a little less frustrating.

Along with Update 2.0.5 itself, Bungie released patch notes that detail some behind-the-scenes alterations that won't be super obvious to players, but should lessen the grind for some Exotics and unique weapons a little less grindy.

The change that's likely to affect the most players is the alteration to Exotic drops. Right now, there's a low chance that players will get Exotic engram drops from enemies while they play through the game, but the item that comes out of those drops is random, which results in a lot of duplicate Exotics. Bungie has altered those drops so that Destiny 2 takes your collection of Exotics into account when determining which item is in the engram you receive. Exotics you don't have will be weighted higher than those you do, which should increase the chance of getting something new out of random drops. Bungie also changed things so that when you do get a duplicate Exotic, the chances that it's a piece of armor, rather than a gun, will be higher--because armor has random perks and guns don't. That way, even if you do get a duplicate Exotic armor, there's a chance it'll be different or better than what you already have.

More players should have a chance at getting another new Exotic that came with Forsaken, Destiny 2's latest expansion: Malfeasance. The Exotic hand cannon can only be earned through a series of quests, and those quests only kick off when players happen to encounter and kill a specific Primeval enemy when playing Gambit matches, called the Ascendant Servitor. Update 2.0.5 ups the likelihood that the Ascendant Servitor will appear in Gambit matches, which should give more players a chance at unlocking Malfeasance.

In the area of non-Exotic unique loot, Bungie has made grinding Nightfall Strikes more fruitful. Each Nightfall has specific loot that only drops in it, but the chances of receiving that stuff are usually pretty low. Destiny 2 now tracks how many Nightfalls you've played without receiving a unique drop, and each time you don't get one, the chances you will in the next Nightfall are increased.

There are a bunch of other balancing and rule changes that come in Update 2.0.5, which you can read about on Bungie's website. They also include a nerf to Sleeper Simulant, a gun that has dominated Gambit and Crucible matches since Forsaken came out, that's sure to bum out a few players--and probably make several more happy to use a different weapon for a change.