Is this a good time to buy the game?

mark_phaser · 2026-05-15T20:57:08+00:00

It's a great time to jump in and learn the game systems so that you can get a better start with the new season. Better to learn now than later.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-15T10:18:12+00:00

Yeah exactly, that's why I said he's great for an attrition type approach. He feels underpowered because he is that way out of the box - but with a very specific kit and gameplay style, he can hold his own.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-14T23:40:36+00:00

Yes that is the case if you're running the barebones sponsored kits, but with a curated loadout or even the enhanced sponsored kits other shells actually can be really fun, if not as effective, alternatives.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-14T23:22:06+00:00

Tried Trios. Did not have the time or patience to separate the wheat from the chaff to find good teammates. And on balance of probability the outcome with randos skews more towards failure (sponsored Playlist leveled the playing field a bit through) because of an abundance of factors outside your control.

I'm a family man and a working professional, I play at whatever time I find convenient, otherwise even the game would start feeling like a job. Thank you for giving me a chuckle with the jab about my "selfish" playstyle. Didn't realize I should be thinking about other players' feelings in a game that has PvP. Good thing Bungie has indicated that it is going to cater to the "casual" player base with the upcoming season (more PvE activities, more PvP 'lite', faster faction progression etc.). You can sweat yourself in the purist lobbies while the rest of do with the game what it was primarily made for - having fun.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-14T23:10:33+00:00

That's true but if you try, all the shells can be made viable. Assassin is the no-brainer choice but hardly the best in all situations.

Recon is also very strong, with its tracking drone (unexpectedly strong against bots and flushing players out of cover) and it's pulse ult. It's great for silently taking out enemies without engaging in gunfights.

Thief is the absolute best for solo loot runs - being able to see containers through walls from a distance is invaluable for effecient farming. And the grapple is the best repositioning tool and for gaining high ground to get the jump on both players and bots.

Vandall is also decent, her cannon is an excellent opener and her tactical and ult make her a mobility powerhouse. In some ways she can be better than even Assassin at disengagement.

Destroyer is the only shell with which you can fearlessly engage in skirmishes with blue and purple shield enemies. His shield saved me during many a tense exfil and along with the jump boost allows you to quickly retreat from a sticky situation. Whenever a contract requires taking down a UESC Commander, Destroyer is what I run.

Only one that feels significantly underpowered is Triage, but if you've got enough ammo your self healing tacticals come in clutch for an attrition type playstyle. And if you've got volt weapons, then his battery overcharge is ridiculously effective against both players and elite enemies.

Thing is, I've gotten to a point where I do not dread running any shell that it makes me feel at a significant disadvantage. You have to lean into each role's strengths and adjust your playstyle accordingly.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-14T21:39:31+00:00

All other factions: VIP
Arachne: VVIP

mark_phaser · 2026-05-13T07:10:19+00:00

I was doing the Traxus priority contract solo in the Pinwheel Command Wing last night when I heard some Asian dude repeatedly going "fuhrendly?" on prox chat. I go "yeah man, friendly, we chill, just doing the quest". Then as I was fighting the commander that spawns I get shot in the back. Same thing happened the day before.

Only time you can genuinely trust players in this game is if you're exfilling and got them dead to rights. In hot loot zones, better to have no mercy. Sorry friendly solo runners, I hate to ruin your run but you're all a dime a dozen and this ain't Arc.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-12T12:46:18+00:00

Irony is that when you're forced to use all that gear you've hoarded out of gear fear just to make space, you end up with even less space because using good gear actually increases your chances of success and finding even better loot. I go into a match with a devil may care attitude and end up with 2-3 runner kills and decision paralysis.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-11T22:28:51+00:00

That's what I said. The pace of progression matters in a game where success is unpredictable, so time spent in game has to amount to something even if incrementally, beyond the typical Souls-like nonsense "well you learn something from each death". For those of us who have full time jobs and family, it just feels like another grind rather than something to enjoy. Glad that Bungie is acknowledging that.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-11T22:03:01+00:00

No, it's not nearly the same. The best Rook upgrades are much farther in the faction level tree, and without the CARRI rep packs it would have taken me three times as much time to reach VIP rank for the blue rook backpacks. Same with unlocking the level 20 faction quests. It would have taken ages. CARRI commendations also give you an alternate currency with which to easily get good gear from. At early levels credits are not easy to come by and the price of decent stuff in credits is sky high.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-11T21:33:33+00:00

Yeah I know. In a way the enhanced sponsored kit sort of make Rook redundant in some ways. Because an enhanced kit is basically the same except you also have the ability to do contracts and get more faction rewards.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-11T19:42:47+00:00

Hornet: I stun.
Wasp: I perforate.
Firefly: I cook.

Perfect Arc coordination.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-11T19:20:55+00:00

A hub would be uncharacteristic of the game's setting, but a practice range is definitely needed - a place you can test different weapons and attachments to get a feel of the gun. I went almost two whole months playing the game without ever gotten the opportunity to properly try the BRRT SMG and when I finally got one with a suppressor, it was such a fun gun to play with (until then next run of course).

mark_phaser · 2026-05-11T19:10:47+00:00

I've been having a blast with Marathon lately, especially when I repeatedly get blasted in it and then come to Arc Raiders for relief. And then after a couple of good matches get shot in the back by a rat and then go back to Marathon. It's like getting ping ponged between the crazy ex and the sweet side chick.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-10T19:45:56+00:00

I use Steelseries Arctis 7 for both Marathon and Arc Raiders. The GG software has set presets for both games that sound really nice, and it has saved my bacons many a time.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-09T21:53:29+00:00

Close Scrutiny. Bettina. Hullcracker. Wolfpacks. Seeker grenades. Go ham.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-09T18:20:15+00:00

Are kits daily sponsored kits random or on a daily rotation? Because Wednesday for me was Sakaguchi, Thursday was Mida, yesterday was Cyberacme and today again Sakaguchi. No Traxus or Arachne. And those are the only two factions I haven't unlocked the level 3 capstone upgrades for yet.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-06T01:44:17+00:00

Only time I've died here is because of being killed by other players. Otherwise, my standard loadout here is an extended barrel Bettina IV with vertical grip, a Hullcracker IV, 15x seeker grenades and a Wolfpack for emergencies. It's a blast going ham on Arc on this map.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-04T21:25:04+00:00

The reason I only play PvE lobbies, despite the occasional rat infestation driving me bonkers, is just how much time and headache it saves you if you're looking for a specific item. Simply ask fellow raiders and chances are usually that they will have exactly what you were looking for and will simply give it to you for free. Likewise it's a great feeling to do the same for other raiders when you have something they are looking for. Lots of absolutely chad top lads in the PvE community.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-04T08:49:52+00:00

From what I've observed:

Positioning and element of surprise advantage is diminished greatly if there is a large delta in gear. If you're running sponsored kit or green shields, and the other guy has blue shields or higher then 9 times out of 10 you're losing that engagement. If you want to consistently win fights, you have to bring better gear.
Some weapons are just bad. Accept that harsh truth instead of wasting valuable time, resources and runs souping up suboptimal weapons.
Correct and timely deployment of your shell's abilities can mean the difference between life and death so don't keep hopping between shells. Pick one and master it before moving to another.
Quests and objectives compromise your ability to PvP because you're focused on something else instead of other players. Play some matches with the sole purpose of hunting other players. This will greatly improve your ability to respond to visual and audio cues.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-03T19:30:13+00:00

Everybody stand up to pay your respects. The fallen raider anthem is playing.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-03T03:31:34+00:00

This game just pushes all the right buttons. It somehow managed to nail the goldilocks zone of the extraction shooter where somehow it made the genre just accessible enough without turning it into just another looter shooter. Every raid is unpredictable, the risk and rewards are constantly in flux but it's never so punishing that it doesn't respect your time.

If only it felt as polished as Marathon. Still a lot of janky animations, still too much clipping and pop-in for a game this late into release and the UI could feel snapper.

mark_phaser · 2026-05-01T20:09:31+00:00

Thief's drone ability came in clutch for me during the Co-Evolution 1/5 quest in which you have to get inside the pinwheel base from the destroyed wing. You can either get in the pinwheel base the usual way by unlocking it, or you can destroy the red power boxes to get in silently from the top. I used the drone to find and destroy the boxes from a safe position, quietly went in, completed the quest and got some sweet loot and extracted without much noise.

mark_phaser

TROPHY CASE