by theygamesDestiny 2 season pass prices will increase from 1000 Silver to 1200 Silver with the launch of Destiny 2 season 21, titled Season of the Deep. The price increase is concerning, given that Bungie already increased the cost of its expansions when it launched Destiny 2 Lightfall in February. Lightfall launched at $50 / £40 for the base expansion, up from $40 / £25 for the previous year’s The Witch Queen. However, Destiny 2‘s approach to the newest season pass price hike in the FPS game seems exceptionally smarmy, given that there’s no in-game option to purchase exactly 1200 Silver, which is how much the season will cost players.
At present, players can purchase Silver for $10 (£8.49), which grants 1100 Silver, $15 (£16.79), which gives 1700 Silver, or $20 (£23.99), which grants 2300 Silver. Ultimately, this means that players who want to purchase a pass for Season of the Deep still have to shell out for the $15 bundle, indicating that even though the cost has only increased by 200 Silver, players are still expected to spend $5 more rather than the amount one might expect, which would be $1-$2.
Bungie continues to find ways to monetise its live service game by charging for expansions and season passes, in-game cosmetics, event passes, and merchandise. There’s also a strong argument that the amount of time that the Destiny 2 grind requires amounts to even more income in microtransactions as the game presents more and more opportunities for players to spend money as part of an ongoing Destiny 2 monetisation strategy.
Some players liken such monetisation to that of a mobile game. Notably, just a few years ago, Bungie secured an investment from mobile company NetEase, which has significant experience in mobile games and how to monetise them. However, it’s unclear whether the relationship with NetEase has made any impact on Bungie’s ongoing monetisation strategies.
Regardless, many players are increasingly frustrated with the game, particularly in light of recent server issues and outages. Many people also reported their dissatisfaction with the Lightfall campaign, noting they expected even more given the expansion’s increase in cost. However, Lightfall also attracted near-record numbers of players, causing some to question why the development company seems to want to continue to maximise profits by finding as many ways as possible to get money from players.
Ultimately, the increase in seasonal content cost alone could be justified due to inflation or the company wishing to increase its staff and provide more support for the game. However, forcing thousands of players to pay a minimum of $5 more for what should amount to a $1-$2 increase seems like yet another way Bungie seeks to maximise profits over the player experience, as highlighted by users on the Destiny 2 Reddit.
With Destiny 2 season 20 wrapping up within the next few weeks, be sure to get your hands on all the Destiny 2 Lightfall Exotics so that you can have the multiplayer game‘s best weapons and gear on hand in time for Season of the Deep — provided you’re willing to pay extra for the seasonal content.