Xbox Destiny beta running below 1080p, can it jump for September?

The Destiny Beta launched yesterday for both PS3 and PS4 at 5pm UK time, offering long-awaiting Bungie fans a chance to get their hands on some of the gameplay footage. After an evening spent exploring the depths of the Cosmodrome, we’ve composed a guide to everything you need to know about the Destiny Beta and Bungie’s latest developments. One thing we can promise, it’s thankfully not just an extended version of the alpha we have already experienced. Read on for the key changes we’ve picked up on so far…

Currently sat on the edge of your seat waiting for the Destiny Beta to download on to your Xbox Console and looking to feast your eyes on some Mythic Science Fiction goodness? Take a peek through our Hints and Tips for Succeeding in Destiny’s Beta to get the upper hand before beginning.



Accessing the Beta and How to Redeem your Codes

To gain access to the beta, you’ll need to preorder Destiny from on online retailer participating in the Beta promotion. Shortly after purchasing this you should receive multiple beta codes via email. One for yourself and a few more to gift to your friends. Alternatively, if you do not intend on pre-ordering the game, we’d recommend preparing your most heart felt pitch for a friend who has preordered, as to why you deserve one of those spare codes.

To redeem your 9 digit code (XXX-XXX-XXX), simply visit destinythegame.com/beta enter your code and select the platform that you would like to play on. If you wish to trial the beta on more than one platform you will need separate beta codes for each and repeat the previous steps.

How Long Does the Beta Last?

The PS4 and PS3 beta launched yesterday on 17th July and the Xbox One and Xbox 360 release date is set for 5pm (UK Time) on Wednesday July 23rd. Both of these beta sessions will be down for maintainance from July 21st-22nd and then finish on July 27th, meaning that PlayStation fans will be granted a whole four extra days of Beta Access. The future is certainly looking bright for Sony right now.

DESTINY BETA FIRST IMPRESSIONS



Peter Dinklage’s voice acting doesn’t sound like … well Peter Dinklage.

After Peter Dinklage's lacklustre voice acting became the subject of many viral internet memes, Bungie promised to redeem his ridiculed performance by modifying his voice to sound more robotic. Previously in the alpha, the audio was left untampered, to leave the Game of Thrones actor’s voice recognisable. However Bungie have kept to their word, with the voice of the companion Ghost, succesfully modified to sound more fitting for an artificial intelligence ally. We’ve also seen a few dialogue alterations since the alpha, most notably, the infamous line ‘That Wizard Came from the Moon!’ appears to have been stripped completely. Such a shame, we were looking forward to hearing the delivery of the updated line that previously left us in fits of laughter.

It’s fairly unlikely that this beta version is the complete finished edit, so I think it’s safe to say we can expect it to be much more refined on relased – But it’s vastly improved and so far I’m impressed.

Brand new missions and objectives to tackle

The most exciting part of an upcoming games beta? Fresh new content to get our hands on. Alongside the story, explore and strike missions that we were introduced to during the Alpa, we’ve got a selection of new missions, set before and those featured in the Alpha, to crack on with. If you explored every single crevice of the Cosmodrome during the Alpa, you may be slightly disappointed with not seeing anything new in the settings, but the missions introduce new story developments and set piece battle that we haven’t seen before. Saying that, some of the paths which were previously blocked with un-accomplishable enemies have now been cleared granting us access to shortcuts between various points of the map.

The auto-aim has been dramatically reduced

If there’s one surefire way to detract hardcore shooter fans from a new release, it’s by downplaying their skills with amateur shooter mechanics. Concerns regarding the aim assist arose during the Alpha, but it seems as if Bungie have significantly tweaked the aim assist for the better. As with any Beta, I’m sure that the mechanics will be fiddled with futher, but for now it seems as if Bungie have struck a honourable balance with satisfying both the newbies and veterans.



Expect shorter Loading Times

Bungie certainly deserves praise for the work that they’ve done in optimizing the beta’s loading times in comparison to those displayed in the Alpha. In fact we’ve rarely even encountered a loading delay whilst exploring Destiny’s open world. You do, unfortunately, have a short wait between selecting your destination and heading through into the action, but with these reduced loading times it’s been no more than around ten seconds.

Will my Destiny Beta Progression Saves Carry over to the final game?

Bungie are yet to make an announcement on this matter, they appear to be torn between placing fans on a level playing field on the launch and rewarding loyal fans that pre-ordered early to gain access to the beta. Hopefully we’ll have more news on this subject in the coming weeks of the beta.

Overall, prepare yourself for a more refined and polished experience when entering this Halo meets Borderlands treat. Have you had a chance to explore the Destiny Beta? Let us know what you think in the comments below.

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