Destiny devs take fans down memory lane for games 7th anniversary: original concept art, lore recap, and more

Connor Knudsen
destiny 2 concept art

Destiny first debuted at E3 in 2013, showing off an amazing and immersive world, full of wonder and possibilities. Seven years later, the game continues to deliver on that promise in Destiny 2.

The game’s first iteration, Destiny, had a groundbreaking launch in 2014 and immediately had the hearts of many hooked on to the looter shooter.

Since then, the title has gone on to develop a sequel in Destiny 2, and has since released loads of expansions full of new content for players to get lost in.

Today, September 9, 2021, the franchise turns seven. What a great time to look back and remember some of the memories that made fans fall in love with Destiny in the first place.

Destiny 2 Iron Banner Season 15
In seven years, the Guardian has evolved greatly in Destiny 2, seen here in recent Iron Banner skins

Destiny 7th Anniversary

In celebration of the game’s seventh anniversary, Destiny developers posted a blog to the official website.

This post features loads of original concept art and a retelling of a beautiful, yet hilarious, story of the game’s initial release at E3 in 2013. In this story, they go on to tell of some rather unfortunate technical issues right as they were showing the world their game for the very first time. But, looking back, the developers seem to have found higher meaning in the chaos of a broken HDMI cable.

“The debut was a success. It showed that, although everything might not always work out perfectly to plan – hard work, preparation, and a stubbornness to succeed would drive this franchise forward. ”

In addition to this story, there was loads of original concept art shared in the post, giving players a peek behind the curtain at some of the earliest pieces of art that would go on to inspire the entire Destiny universe we know and love today.

The game has come a long way from these sketches, but they still remain as impressive as ever despite the game’s evolution. A few of the author’s favorites can be seen below.

destiny 2 hunter early concept art
More early renderings of guardians, looking like what later became the Hunter class
destiny concept art vex
The early depictions of the Vex are just as haunting as the real thing
destiny locations concept art
Early map renderings

The blog post continued, looking back through the game’s lore and its past expansions, all the way from The Dark Below of 2014, to the upcoming Witch Queen, set to debut on 2/22/22.

Each expansion is remembered with its own haunting rendition. And, in doing so, each captures the fear instilled in viewers at release — fear that led to exciting battles and conquests through caves and new planets.

The post is capped off with optimistic reassurances about the future for Destiny: “Seven years is a long time, but Destiny is nowhere near being done. Happy birthday Destiny. Your future is bright.”

With the Lightfall and Final Shape expansions set to follow the Witch Queen, it appears that developers look to follow up on their promise in the coming years.