Destiny 2 Experiences 90% Player Drop-off, Loyal Fans React with No Surprise

Recent reports indicate a significant decline in the player base of Destiny 2, a trend that has not taken the community by surprise. Despite the anticipation leading up to the June 2024 launch of The Final Shape expansion, concerns about Bungie’s stability within the game development cycle linger due to the risk of the expansion’s perceived failure.

Upon the arrival of this much-anticipated expansion, both players and critics initially praised Bungie, with Destiny 2 achieving a remarkable peak of 314,634 concurrent users on Steam during its first 24 hours. However, in a twist of fate, this high was short-lived, as Bungie proceeded to lay off 220 employees at the end of July 2024, highlighting the fragility of the game’s success amid a notable decline in player engagement.

Massive Player Decline Post-The Final Shape

Notably, a report from Forbes’ Paul Tassi revealed that approximately 90% of the player base on PC has vanished since the launch of The Final Shape. As of now, SteamDB records a mere 36,610 peak players over the last month, a staggering drop from over 300,000 active users within the past eight months.

Destiny 2 Steam charts data as of January 7, 2025.

Community sentiments echoed through the Destiny 2 subreddit, where users shared their disappointment. A popular comment captured this sentiment: “Look at the content we’re getting, no wonder people don’t want to play.” Another user remarked on Bungie’s decision to forego annual expansions, expressing the belief that the game is now in a state of “life support,”which understandably contributes to the dwindling player population.

Further insights from community discussions reveal a common sentiment that playing Destiny 2 has increasingly felt like an obligation rather than an enjoyable pastime. One player reflected, “With my limited playtime, I want to feel rewarded. I stopped playing because the game felt more like a job than something I did for fun.”

While The Final Shape demonstrated Bungie’s ability to captivate the Destiny audience initially, questions linger about whether the current update model will rekindle the same enthusiasm in the long run.

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