If you haven’t spent much time in the sci-fi gaming scene, one of its most prominent names has recently suffered a sudden, painful blow. Destiny 2, a major force in the genre, will stop receiving new content from its developer, Bungie. Even though fans have come back to mark the moment, this still signals the close of a significant chapter.
As a result, many players are now looking for comfort in other virtual worlds. Some sharper, more analytical voices might frame this as an opening for rival games. Still, the publicly available Warframe team—often seen as Destiny’s closest match—has offered nothing but sympathy.
“Honestly, it’s devastating. It’s earth-shattering. I never anticipated reading an article from Bungie stating that Destiny 2 is essentially coming to an end,” community director and live ops lead Megan Everett told Eurogamer.
“I’m sharing this from my own perspective, but I think a lot of people will feel the same way. No one is celebrating what’s happening to Destiny, its players, or its story. Even though some have called us ‘direct competitors’, I still think a game benefits from having rivals. The team behind Destiny has done an amazing job building out that narrative, regardless of the conditions they were working under.”
Not long after Bungie confirmed that Destiny 2 would be getting its final update, Warframe’s creative director Rebecca Ford shared on X that “there is no Warframe without the heritage of Bungie games”. In doing so, she reflected on her own journey through both Halo and Destiny. Later, she revealed an in-game honorific (account title cosmetic) that players can earn which directly recognizes Destiny, as a nod to its counterpart.
Everett echoes this same outlook. She pointed to the renewed interest in Destiny 2 after its end-of-support announcement, and she said she’s still processing the public reaction to the game over the past stretch.
“What’s unfortunate and disheartening is that they released this news, and then suddenly people are showing all this support. They’ve been dealing with heavy criticism for a long time, and now it feels like, where was all this respect? People should move past the negativity and show appreciation, because it could have genuinely made a difference. I know it was there, but it wasn’t as visible as the criticism.”
“At the end of the day, it breaks my heart to see this happen to them. I have friends who prefer playing Destiny instead of Warframe, and I’m not angry about that. We have people over there, and watching this tragedy unfold for them is a tough hit for the industry. Nobody expected Destiny to fade away. They went through their own highs and lows—we’ve had our struggles too. People talk about content gaps and railjack (space missions)—we all have hard days. Living in a world where they’re gone isn’t something I’d describe as positive.”
Some have viewed this regrettable situation for Bungie as a win for Digital Extremes. Warframe, which recently rolled out a new update, is now preparing for its yearly Tennocon showcase, where additional announcements are expected and enthusiasm around the game is clearly building.
Even so, Warframe’s team has pushed back against those interpretations. Ford, in her earlier social media post, ended with the line: “do not provide comfort through comparison!” That message is also echoed by Everett.
“We’re used to seeing comparisons between Warframe and Destiny almost every day from within the community. This kind of conversation can be productive—highlighting that the two games both draw from sci-fi, while still targeting completely different audiences,” Everett explains. “We tried focusing on PvP, but we’re not a PvP-first studio. If you’re coming to Warframe just for that rush, you’ll likely feel let down for a long time.”
“I would never call what happened with Destiny a good outcome, even if it ‘removes a competitor.’ That isn’t how we see it at all. I do think competition is a positive thing. Having games similar enough that their communities can talk and compare—possibly even helping educate players about each title—doesn’t have to be a bad thing. I’ve always believed that nobody should feel like they have to play only Warframe. If you tried to do that exclusively, you’d burn out quickly. So, having other games that satisfy a similar need is healthy for the genre. Having Destiny helped us.”