Destiny really begins only after you reach level 20 says Bungie

The most anticipated title of 2014 is almost here and most gamers have already started making preparations for the moment when servers will go live on Tuesday, September 9th at 12:01 AM PDT or 3:01 AM EDT. It’s a pretty safe bet that we’ll be seeing tons of stories about Destiny in the following days, weeks and probably even months. But if you care more about actually playing the game than reading about it you have to know that the true epicness of Destiny will only begin after you reach level 20, also known as the ‘soft level cap’. Bungie says that after level 20 you will need to acquire better gear in order to advance further and eventually reach the higher levels.

“Destiny really begins at Level 20,” Bungie said in a recent blog post. “Afterwards, each player’s power is displayed as their Light Level – this is the yellow number in their nameplate post-20 in the Tower. The way to increase that Level? Get better gear. Strikes and Crucible matches can award powerful gear and currencies which you’ll use to buy Legendary (purple) gear from the Tower. Players can choose to champion one of our three Factions (New Monarchy, Dead Orbit, or Future War Cult) in both cooperative and competitive activities. This allows them to rank up and purchase gear from a particular Faction.”

Fortunately there’s plenty to do after you reach the soft level cap so the real fun only begins then. Once players get to level 20 they will receive access to the Heroic Mode for Daily Heroic Story Chapters and Weekly Heroic Strikes. Elsewhere, Bungie reminds us that plenty of people will likely post Destiny reviews shortly after launch, but seeing as how the game only gets interesting after level 20 they might not very accurate. That being said, we’re probably only going to see relevant reviews come out after players have had enough time to experience a decent amount of content and have a good idea about what Destiny offers.

“For us, this is a first – a new experience.,” Bungie said. “It’s a bit of a risk, too. We fully anticipate seeing day one reviews from folks who decide to kick the tires, but don’t have the time or patience to take our ride for a nice, long road trip. Some of you might wait to pick up a copy until you read the final verdict from your most trusted review house. We’re okay with that. We’ve created something we’re proud of.”