I know it’s been mere days since my last post about Destiny, but as of yesterday, the next story step of the Season of the Drifter became available. One that is pretty unique as far as Destiny content goes, in that to forces you into making a permanent choice between two factions. (Warning: this post contains me droning about Destiny Lore)
This choice is based around a growing unease between the Praxic Order of warlocks; a sect as traditional as a guardian can get, and the Drifter; everyone’s new favourite roguish scoundrel. While the true scope of this decision point is yet to be revealed, or even if it is a far reaching as Bungie claim, there isn’t much for player to base their decision on.
Most times players have to make a choice in Destiny, it’s based around a certain reward. Like during the last round of faction rally’s. Everyone backed the team that had the best gun; which was the Graviton Lance at the time. Now though, there is nothing to base our choice on but our own intuition and the story information at hand.
In other words, it’s a choice to be made based on lore. Obviously, I am not surprised that practically every account of people I’ve seen online sided the the Drifter. As consumers of media, we’ve been conditioned to root for the charismatic criminal, the dangerous man with the welcoming smile. By all accounts, the Drifter is a likeable character on the surface who rewards players for taking part in his less than scrupulous activities. You bet your ass I’m siding with the Vanguard.
I made this decision mostly from a role playing perspective, seeing as how I had nothing else to really base it on, and the Drifter is not a man to be trusted. Not just that, but so many players seem to be so easily swayed by him and his demeanour. I’d like to think my guardian is more honourable than that. Why would my Guardian turn their back on the Vanguard who they’ve stood by since their resurrection, as opposed to the Drifter who only just showed up after the dawning of the new golden age with bribes.
My guardian is not so easily swayed, if the Drifter really wanted me to trust him, then maybe he should have shown his face to help out during the Black Garden, or help us defeat Crota. Where was he when the Taken Kind Oryx showed up and nearly took out the Awoken? I didn’t see him fighting off Ghaul and his red legion when humanity itself was on the brink. He was conveniently absent.
And maybe he did help, working in the shadows to help things in work out in our favour. Well, that’s his problem, not mine.
Some people might not like the stuffy, by the book remaining members of the Vanguard. But I’d sure as shit rather have them fighting by my side in a crisis than a man I can’t trust to not shoot me in the back with some weapon of sorrow, just so he can slink away in the confusion. Only to show up another millennia later to take some other poor gullible guardians for a ride.
I certainly agree that the Drifter is an intriguing character, one who brings all kinds of new possibility to Destiny. The game is a much better one with him in it. I just find it sad that my fellow guardians were so easily swayed and quick to buy into his smooth talking and flashy rewards.
In the end, I have some deep seeded rejection of something whenever I feel like it’s trying to manipulate me, and everything the Drifter does screams manipulation. And I’m sure there are deeper arguments here about freedom vs authoritarianism, but a government structure is fine as long as the people at the top aren’t prioritising a personal power trip over the good of their people under them. I can’t see Zavala or Ikora doing that.
I’m excited to see how much ends up coming of this storyline, and if it has the repercussions Bungie claim it to have.
A Richard Wood Text Adventure 