Destiny 2 launching Sept. 8, watch the reveal trailer

Destiny 2, the full sequel to Destiny, will be released Sept. 8 on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One — and on Windows PC, developer Bungie and publisher Activision announced today.

“Our home was attacked,” Commander Zavala begins, speaking to the remnants of his forces. “Despite the sacrifice of many brave Guardians, we lost everything: the Tower, our City, our home.” The invaders, an elite Cabal army known as the Red Legion, were led by an enemy named Ghaul. (Bungie isn’t explicitly referring to these foes as Cabal, but the Collector’s Edition of Destiny 2 is Cabal-themed.)

Bungie/Activision

The trailer also features a similar, if less inspiring, speech from Cayde-6; the Warlock Vanguard, Ikora Rey, only has one line. (Cayde even references the fact that Guardians will have to start fresh in Destiny 2, as far as Light and gear is concerned.) It’s all very character-focused and full of personality, which is almost a complete 180° from the previous game. All three characters are voiced by the same actors as in Destiny: Lance Reddick for Zavala, Gina Torres for Ikora and Nathan Fillion for Cayde.

Pre-orders are now open for multiple editions of Destiny 2. Customers who pre-order any edition of the game will receive early access to its beta, which will be available on all three platforms. (The beta will eventually open up to people who don’t pre-order Destiny 2.) Bungie will launch the beta this summer. The studio will debut gameplay footage of Destiny 2 during a livestream that’s scheduled for May 18.

Just like with the original game, Bungie and Activision are selling an Expansion Pass that grants access to two forthcoming add-ons to Destiny 2 for $34.99. The pricing suggests that once again, those expansions will cost $19.99 individually. There are no details on either add-on yet, but a logo for the first one suggests it will have something to do with Trials of Osiris. Expansion 2’s icon is the sigil of Rasputin, the Warmind from Destiny’s Old Russia.

Another similarity between Destiny and Destiny 2: PlayStation users will get exclusive content that will remain exclusive for at least one year — until fall 2018. Unlike the previous game, Destiny 2 will not be available on PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360; Bungie and Activision ditched the last-generation platforms with Destiny’s most recent expansion, Rise of Iron.

Bungie/Activision

Destiny 2 will cost $59.99 on its own, and $89.99 bundled with the Expansion Pass. There are three editions of the game that are more expensive, and all of them also come with the Expansion Pass. Destiny 2’s Digital Deluxe Edition ($99.99) will come with three digital items: a legendary sword, a legendary emote and a Cabal Empire-themed emblem. A physical Limited Edition will be available for the same price, exclusively at GameStop. That package will contain the Digital Deluxe Edition’s items and will come in a Steelbook case inside a Cabal-themed box along with four physical items.

Finally, there will be a Collector’s Edition of Destiny 2 for $249.99. It will come with all the aforementioned physical and digital content, as well as two exclusive physical items. One is a “Frontier Kit,” featuring a solar blanket, solar-powered USB charger with a built-in light, and a paracord. The other is a “Frontier Bag,” which can be worn as a backpack or messenger bag and can hold a laptop up to 15 inches in size. You can see the full package below.

Today’s reveal trailer for Destiny 2 follows a CG teaser that Bungie released earlier this week, one day after officially announcing the sequel. That clip, “Last Call,” consisted of Nathan Fillion’s Cayde-6 — the Hunter Vanguard — regaling a sweeper bot with war stories in a half-destroyed bar. The teaser suggested that Destiny 2 won’t take itself as seriously as its predecessor, even though the situation appears to be more dire than ever, with invasion of The Last City on Earth by the forces of the Darkness known as the Cabal.

Destiny 2 will arrive three years after the original Destiny, which launched Sept. 9, 2014, on PlayStation 3, PS4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. Bungie released four expansions for the game: The Dark Below in December 2014, House of Wolves in May 2015, The Taken King in September 2015 and Rise of Iron in September 2016. For details on how Bungie could make the sequel better from the start, check out our wish list.

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