Destiny 2is no stranger to cheating. Throughout its lifespan, countless players have been caught cheating in various aspects of the game, and especially in its more competitive scenes, like Crucible, Iron Banner, and Trials of Osiris. The use of aimbots, wallhacks, lag-switching, and net-limiting has long plagued the game’s PvP activities, even after the implementation of BattlEye and its aim to put a full stop on cheating.Destiny 2’s PvPis far from the only arena affected by cheating, however, as even PvE cheating has slowly crept in over the years, with the most recent occurrence involving the game’s latest raid.
One of the most coveted claims to fame inDestiny 2is a day-one clear of a brand-new raid, but if players manage to conquer that raid within the first 48 hours of it being live, they’re likely to feel just as accomplished. This is because new raids inDestiny 2launch in Contest Mode for the first two days of their lifespan, which increases their difficulty across the board and thus makes completing them during that time period all the more sought after. Unfortunately, it seems the glory that awaits the players hoping to claim it tempted them a bit too much this time, asDestiny 2’s new Desert Perpetual raid saw an incredibly high illegitimate completion rate due to cheaters.
Destiny 2’s Desert Perpetual Raid Was a Cheater’s Paradise
Within days of the newDesert Perpetual raidgoing live, players began combing through public raid data on RaidHub and other third-party sites because some things just weren’t adding up almost immediately. The legitimate World First team, Team Nuts, took over 15 hours to beat the raid, all while livestreaming the entire process. However, not long after, dozens of other Desert Perpetual clears appeared on Raid Report that showed completion times as low as 20 minutes. Needless to say, such a massive gap between the lengthy clear time of the legitimate World First team and many others was off-putting, signaling that teams who were able to complete it in such a short amount of time were more than likely illegitimate, cheating clears.
Around 70% of Desert Perpetual raid clears were flagged as suspicious, which is unprecedented for aDestiny 2raid.
Further investigation led to some not-so-surprising finds, with many of the teams that ranked in the top 100 clears of Contest Mode had players with extremely suspicious statistics. From incredibly fast clears and gear anomalies to kill count imbalances and low-history accounts, red flags were everywhere. Now,Destiny 2’s Contest Modehas never looked shakier in terms of competitive credibility, which couldn’t have come at a worse time for the game as it struggles to maintain relevancy.
Destiny 2’s Latest Contest Mode Raid Has Exposed a Massive Integrity Problem
It’s one thing for PvP to see cheaters now and then, but an entirely different thing when cheating becomes such a widespread problem inDestiny 2’s core endgame content, which now includes the Desert Perpetual raid. Contest Mode raids are designed to reward the most prepared, coordinated, and dedicated teams, but when cheaters start flooding the leaderboards, everythingDestiny 2’s endgame is built on begins to crack, revealing underlying issues and putting the game’s foundational and structural integrity into question.
Now,Destiny 2’s Contest Mode has never looked shakier in terms of competitive credibility, which couldn’t have come at a worse time for the game as it struggles to maintain relevancy.
Worse yet, it highlights how under-equipped Bungie may be to deal with large-scale PvE exploitation in real time. With layoffs in its Player Security division over the last couple of years and an aggressive cheat market, the Desert Perpetual raid controversy suggests that evenDestiny 2’s most sacred traditionsmay no longer be safe without some serious changes to the game’s framework and long-term viability as a live-service MMO in an increasingly critical climate.
Destiny 2
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Dive into the world of Destiny 2 to explore the mysteries of the solar system and experience responsive first-person shooter combat. Unlock powerful elemental abilities and collect unique gear to customize your Guardian’s look and playstyle. Enjoy Destiny 2’s cinematic story, challenging co-op missions, and a variety of PvP modes alone or with friends. Download for free today and write your legend in the stars.An Immersive StoryYou are a Guardian, defender of the Last City of humanity in a solar system under siege by infamous villains. Look to the stars and stand against the darkness. Your legend begins now.Guardian ClassesChoose from the armored Titan, mystic Warlock, or swift Hunter.
