As of last night I've now completed every raid in Destiny 2! So, I thought I'd do a ranking of how I found them, because why not!
Spire of StarsRemember playing Pass the Parcel at some kid's birthday party and being the penultimate one to unwrap the present? Stretch the basic mechanics of that game out over 2 hours, add in multiple other play mechanics requiring pin-point accuracy then repeat everything 3 times until you actually make any progress. By far the worst of all the end game activities, SoS is fiddly, frustrating and just not very fun.
LeviathanAnother mechanic heavy raid, Leviathan is another slog. There's almost no bosses or combat here, just constant contending with tricky team based co-ordination exercises. It can be fun if you have a seasoned team, but on my first run it took 5 straight hours and almost put me off raiding entirely.
Crown of SorrowsBit of cheat here as I've only ever done the final encounter. And it was fun! The main mechanic is juggling a buff that allows you to damage special enemies but stops you from damaging normal foes. Teaming up with a partner, you have to defeat powerful enemies whilst buffing and rebuffing each other and managing time frames and damage dealing.
Eater of WorldsThe shortest of the raids, this is super fun and one of the game's most impressive set pieces. From the Leviathan you're flung into the heart of its planet eating core and forced to battle a giant Vex with the best design of any enemy in the game. It's just complicated enough to be fun for everyone, and quick enough to polish off in less than an hour. A great experience.
Scourge of the PastJust getting to see more of the Last City is worth doing this raid for, but then you get a great variety of activities to do including map reading and orienteering, Sparrow racing and a final encounter with the Destiny-verse's equivalent of Metal Gear. It's not such a visual tour-de-force as some of the other raid areas, nor is the narrative as interesting, but there isn't a single duff encounter.
Garden of SalvationThe newest raid, and probably the best looking, the Garden of Salvation starts where you killed the final boss of Destiny 1. The main mechanic is the tether, where you and fellow Guardian's must use your bodies to connect beams of light to unlock doors and apply buffs. The area is stunning, with some of the best skyboxes in the game and the encounters are, to a one, furious fun. The final boss is a real challenge without ever feeling frustrating or cheap. A fantastic experience.
The Last WishEven after 2 years, the Last Wish is still my favoruite raid. It gets everything right: the puzzles are complex enough to be challenging whilst not requiring the absolute accuracy of Leviathan, the bosses are multi-layered and interesting, the setting is gorgeous and the variety of tasks is perfect. It also has the best narrative, being the conclusion of the Forsaken campaign, and Riven is still perhaps the most interesting boss in the game. I've run it at least 10 times now trying to get the exotic One Thousand Voices fusion rifle, and it's never gotten old.
It's weird to think that
five of these will be disappearing come November. I'm certainly glad I got to experience them whilst they were still around.
Screenies of last night's Garden run!