It hasn’t been the best week forDestiny 2players who like playing from a distance. While the balance update that Bungie revealed this week won’t be going live until the start of next season, it’s clear thatDestiny 2’s sniper rifles are going to be considerably nerfed, and a lot of players are none too pleased about it.
For those not up to date, sniper rifles have seen an increase in popularity in the past few months, thanks to some welcome buffs that were added toDestiny 2with theShadowkeepexpansion, plus the introduction of the immensely-powerful Izanagi’s Burden. Unfortunately, Bungie has decided to roll back these buffs as part ofSeason 10’s impending sandbox update, which will result in a 20% damage reduction for sniper rifles across the board, in addition to reduced precision modifiers for adaptive sniper frames and base damage for rapid-fire snipers.
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Bungie’s reasoning for the nerfs is that theShadowkeepbuffs have effectively given players too much “safety” outside the range of most enemies, allowing them to gain an unfair advantage usingsniper rifles in PvPand PvE. Many players, however, are crying foul at the developer’s logic, with many online taking issue with Bungie deciding to nerf an entire weapon class instead of addressing its more overpowered weapons.
The most basic of the arguments against the nerfs so far is that, being a shooter,Destiny 2naturally compels players to fight from a distance with most of its weapons, not just snipers.Shadowkeepin particular introduced activities and encounters that favored long-ranged play, like theboss fights in the Garden of Salvation raid. Add to that the fact that most high-level enemies and bosses can quickly kill players who try coming at them with a sword or shotgun, and most players agree that the problem isn’t overpowered sniper rifles, but game design that discourages close-ranged play in most situations.
It’s possible, though, that that might just be a moot point, because many believe that the true reason for the nerfs boils down to weapon usage. Since sniper rifles were used so frequently during the seasons followingShadowkeep, it’s likely that Bungie is simply nerfing them to encourage players to switch over to other, less-utilized weapon types, likeswords, which are getting a major overhaul forDestiny 2’s Season 10.
Whatever the reason is, it remains to be seen howsniper rifles inDestiny 2, and their usage, will ultimately be affected going forward. Season 10 is expected to start sometime in March, so it won’t be much longer before players can find out for themselves. Still, it’s not a good look for Bungie to be going into a new season making players angry.
Destiny 2is available for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
