Destiny's second expansion, Rise of Iron was just released and it's a ton of fun whether you've been playing since day one, or you're just getting started. There is a third category of Destiny players: the lapsed, the folks who played the original game and then wandered away before the first expansion was released.
So you're hearing how great the new expansion is and you want to get back into Destiny? Here's what you need to know.
Returning is easy
Bungie has made it really easy to return to the game, even if you've been gone for two years. The main aspects of Destiny remain unchanged; basically... shoot everything. If you need a refresher before you jump into the new campaign, you can continue where you left off when you stopped playing.
Granted, doing so means you'll mow through the waves of baddies with ridiculous ease, but it means that you can remember where all of your controls are. This might not be necessary, but it is handy in a pinch.
Tokens are your friend
Jumping directly into Rise of Iron can be daunting. After all, it's a level 40 campaign. If you log back in and realize that you're only level 16, you might get discouraged. After all, who wants to grind through dozens of levels just to be able to play the new content?
Have no fear, because Bungie has you covered. When you first log in, you'll have access to a Token that can automatically level you up to 40. You'll get access to a full set of new guns, and armor that will pop your light up to 300. This inventory isn't the best that you can get, but it will set you up to get started.
Your character's class will also level up and allow you to choose which abilities and subclass you want to run with. While you certainly don't have to use the token, it does ensure that you can jump directly into Rise of Iron without having to play through all of the other content that is available.
Just remember one thing: that token is only usable one time. You can choose to either use it on an existing character, or a new character, but once you use it, that's it. You should be sure that the class you decide to level up is the one you really want to play with, because there's no take-backsies here.
There is new content everywhere
When Destiny first arrived on the scene, it wasn't exactly overflowing with content. So when you get back into it, things can be a bit overwhelming. You've got all of the missions that you remember from two years ago, as well as the brand new Rise of Iron content, The Taken King from last year, and more.
Both Taken King and Rise of Iron also include side quests and content that isn't directly tied in to the campaign. Even if you haven't played Taken King you'll still run into Taken enemies lurking in areas that they didn't initially inhabit. If anything this makes returning to a game you already know more fun because you aren't just repeating the original game.
Welcome back
So there you have it — Rise of Iron brings a lot of new content to Destiny, but it hasn't fundamentally changed the game. And you get to level right on up to 40 if you're not already there. If you let Destiny fall by the wayside, there's never been a better time to pick it back up!
