Destiny 2: Beyond Light patch notes are up

Destiny 2's big Beyond Light expansion is live today, and that means it's time for some very long patch notes for what is technically and officially known as Destiny 2 update 3.0.0.

Most of the high points of the update have already been covered, so there aren't any big surprises to be found: Orbs of Light are now Orbs of Power, login screens and full-screen menus now have dark backgrounds, there are new vendors in the Tower, and The Moutaintop, among other pinnacle weapons, is being heavily nerfed. That last development left our resident Destinysmith Tim Clark feeling rather sad, even though he acknowledged that it's probably necessary.

"Given how strong Mountaintop and several other of the pinnacles were, it's no surprise that Bungie gave up on trying to balance them," he wrote in his recent ode to the defanged grenade launcher. "Instead, with Beyond Light the game is introducing a system that 'sunsets' all legendary weapons according to the season they were released.

"Regardless, Destiny is at its best when the sandbox is surprising you, making you think about your loadout and encounters in different ways. In a game that's fundamentally about chasing loot, I mourn the death of the pinnacles. Fundamentally, they were cool."

We also recently spoke with Bungie 2 creative director Luke Smith on why Destiny 2 is what it is, and what Bungie can (and can't) do about that as it carries on into the future—an interesting conversation if you've ever wondered why Destiny 2 continues to thrive while other looter-shooters have fallen by the wayside. 

As for the full Destiny 2: Beyond Light patch notes, you can dive into those at bungie.net.