Destiny 2 reissuing iconic weapons is great but they’ll never feel the same

Destiny 2 is bringing back some of the game’s most iconic weapons with the Into the Light update, but will they actually be able to capture their former glory?

Earlier this week we saw Destiny 2 Into the Light, a free update coming to the game before Lightfall, fully revealed. While the big marquee addition is going to be the Horde-mode inspired Onslaught, for veteran players, another will have caught the eye.

In the gameplay showcased by Bungie and from subsequent assets, we’ve seen fan-favorite weapons of old being used by Guardians.

Midnight Coup, Blast Furnace, and Falling Guilotine have been shown off, and there’s been speculation regarding the return of Luna’s Howl, Hammerhead, and even arguably the game’s best-ever weapon – the Recluse. 

Of course, there’s something warm and fuzzy about seeing these weapons back. Pulling out a gun you have a lot of memories with is just a nice feeling. Popping an alien with a headshot from a long-time favorite is what Destiny 2’s all about.

But even with sunsetting in Beyond Light, that was so long ago that many vaults are once again bursting with top-tier options. Our arsenals have grown bigger than ever and crucially, we can craft perfect rolls now. Our guns are so well rounded and perfected, that the only way to really make returning guns matter in the same way again is making them game-breaking.

These older guns were exceptional because, at their respective times, they were best in slot and defined the meta – but we have a far more homogenized arsenal now. It’s hard to make returning guns really stand out. I know this because it happened to me earlier this year. In Season of the Deep, Spare Rations came back. It’s my favorite primary ever.

Yet, I’ve not once taken out the new Spare Rations. Granted, the reissue came with some disappointing perks, but a Rapid Hit/Kill Clip Spare Rations just isn’t going to move the needle when I have my Calus’ Mini-Tool that synergizes so effectively with my Solar Warlock build.

That’s not to say some of these reissues could be better than currently available guns. But, even if some excel, it’s hard to see these recapturing their old aura. The Recluse could get reissued, even with Master of Arms (you actually can pull this from collections now – and it’s still not great in content where you can still run it), will it do anything to the meta? Is it actually going to revlutionize my builds against a perfectly rolled PvE Funnelweb? It might be a tiny bit better, but will it be enough to actually be meaningful? 

In Destiny 2, we deal in centimeters, not feet. The ugly truth none of us want to admit is that we put a lot of time into chasing weapons to get god rolls, and either they’re tossed into our vault soon after acheiving them never to be used again, or they improve our Boss Damage by 0.05%.

Of course, the weapons returning are a net postive. Having a Midnight Coup back in my hands and relevant will be great, and I’ll love chasing after a decent roll. That said, for those looking to get these once meta-defining weapons, just keep your expectations of them feeling as special as they used to in check.