'Shadowkeep' was an expansion released for 'Destiny' back in October of 2019. 'Destiny' is game which as existed since 2014, and in all of its years, having played for every single one, I can comfortably tell you that this is one of the worst DLCs ever created for this franchise. I know that a lot of people might think that to be a sloppy contender for most hyperbolic statement ever put in a game review, and I can see why but hear me out.
I am in no way denying the genuine highlights that do exist in this DLC, the Garden of Salvation raid, the staggeringly good lore entries, the more meaningful revised moon, the Pit of Heresy dungeon, as well as the first and last missions of the campaign. But, unfortunately, what quality elements to be found here are just that, just what I have listed. I can—no joke—think of absolutely nothing else redeemable about this expansion, in fact, those staggeringly good lore book additions are in some ways annoying given how disproportionately beautiful they are in writing compared to the slop in the actual story missions. 'Shadowkeep' is a collage of corny nostalgia bait and feels practically adverse to new ideas within the game, barring its innovations to armour systems which did admittedly revolutionise build-crafting into being far more meaningful—even if such depth was not truly elucidated until ways into its successor expansion, 'Beyond Light.'
Video-essayist Whitelight lent a pretty sufficient line to describing the nature of Shadowkeep's "callbacks" which was this:
"When they said we'd be reliving parts from Destiny 1, I thought they meant reliving the experience ... not the bad boss design."*
*quote slightly paraphrased, sorry im tired lol
Ultimately, 'Shadowkeep' is the form of attempted nostalgia that casts a shadow over the genuinely good elements of its source material rather than illuminating it's strengths and re-contextualising them in a meaningful way, which results in a cheap and substance-less experience for most of the time one would spend with its constituents. I can, however, comfortably say that the good moments are worth time and money, just not at all the full 36AUD. I can only truly recommend a purchase of this DLC on a hefty sale, in 2022 you're much better off spending the higher amount of money on 'The Witch Queen' if you're really on the lookout for more 'Destiny' to play, that content is of far higher quality.
I am in no way denying the genuine highlights that do exist in this DLC, the Garden of Salvation raid, the staggeringly good lore entries, the more meaningful revised moon, the Pit of Heresy dungeon, as well as the first and last missions of the campaign. But, unfortunately, what quality elements to be found here are just that, just what I have listed. I can—no joke—think of absolutely nothing else redeemable about this expansion, in fact, those staggeringly good lore book additions are in some ways annoying given how disproportionately beautiful they are in writing compared to the slop in the actual story missions. 'Shadowkeep' is a collage of corny nostalgia bait and feels practically adverse to new ideas within the game, barring its innovations to armour systems which did admittedly revolutionise build-crafting into being far more meaningful—even if such depth was not truly elucidated until ways into its successor expansion, 'Beyond Light.'
Video-essayist Whitelight lent a pretty sufficient line to describing the nature of Shadowkeep's "callbacks" which was this:
"When they said we'd be reliving parts from Destiny 1, I thought they meant reliving the experience ... not the bad boss design."*
*quote slightly paraphrased, sorry im tired lol
Ultimately, 'Shadowkeep' is the form of attempted nostalgia that casts a shadow over the genuinely good elements of its source material rather than illuminating it's strengths and re-contextualising them in a meaningful way, which results in a cheap and substance-less experience for most of the time one would spend with its constituents. I can, however, comfortably say that the good moments are worth time and money, just not at all the full 36AUD. I can only truly recommend a purchase of this DLC on a hefty sale, in 2022 you're much better off spending the higher amount of money on 'The Witch Queen' if you're really on the lookout for more 'Destiny' to play, that content is of far higher quality.