Destiny's Ghost Wasn't Always Meant to be Dull as Dirt

Okay, I am not going to be the first to admit this, nor will I be the last: Destiny's story was incredibly disappointing. What could have been fleshed out didn't in-game, and most of the lore could only be accessed via Bungie's website in the form of collector's cards that you earn.

Despite the lack of a deep story, the FPS MMO was a popular and fun game to play, especially with friends. But many couldn't help but wonder: Where was the magic of Bungie's storytelling? Was it entirely lost with Halo?

Furthermore, what also made the story yawn-inducing was the monotone, dry performance of Ghost, your "little light" sidekick voiced by Peter Dinklage. Yet, the personality of Ghost was not always dull. In fact, Bungie even hired two popular comedians to write dialogue for Ghost at one point during development.

David Cross, who is known for his role as Tobias Funke from Arrested Development, revealed to IGN that he spent a short amount of time writing material for Ghost with comedian Brian Posehn. Apparently, the two were flown to Bungie's headquarters for a few days.

In a podcast, Cross stated:
 

"Brian Posehn and I got asked and jumped at the chance. We were flown up to Bellevue, Washington to do a punch-up on the Ghost character in Destiny about a year ago. We were both very excited about it. They did not use a single, solitary thing that we wrote, which is a shame because we wrote some stuff that -- you know, we're gamers, and they... I would imagine somebody somewhere said, 'We can't inject this levity or humor into it.'"

He later goes onto to admit that during his playtime with Destiny, he found Ghost lacking in personality. Which is perfectly understandable.
 

"[W]hen you're at an hour 20 of that thing, it's like the Ghost is kind of monotone saying this thing, 'We must get over the ridge. That's the Cabal -- we've got to defeat him.' Whatever, it's boring as s---, and I speak for myself and Brian, and I know thousands, if not millions of other gamers would be like, 'It would be nice to have a joke or something in there.' You think we're going to f--- with the tone? But it was very exciting to go up there and get paid to play a video game a year before it came out."

What he and Posehn wrote was described as "self-reverential" and were "winking to gamers."

A bit unfortunate, considering many gamers, including myself, would have loved to hear the humor in Ghost, or at least hear some form of personality besides a monotone, blank slate. Let's hope Destiny's sequel will learn its lesson in regards to both story and characterization, but for now, gamers should look ahead instead toward the upcoming expansion, The Taken King, set for September 15, which will set you back $40 at least.

For those not aware of what to expect from the expansion, here's a small list to help:

• New story missions and an array of sidequests that conspire to tell the story of our battle to defend our Solar System against Oryx and his Taken army
• New narrative driven by cinematic cutscenes starring an engaging cast of characters
• New Exotic Weapons, Exotic Armor, and Exotic Questlines
• The Dreadnaught, a full new destination, with unique secrets, rituals, and treasures to uncover
• A new breed of enemy combatants, The Taken (apparently reskinned enemies), armed with new abilities and weapons
• An increased Level Cap, and new ways for your Guardian to grow more powerful
• The most substantial injection of new, unique, and redesigned weapons, armor, and talents to date
• New subclasses with all new Supers and abilities
• New cooperative Strikes with unique and dynamic new Boss battles
• Redesigned and reimagined Strikes - Dust Palace, Undying Mind, and Cerberus Vae III - are now overrun by The Taken
• New Crucible multiplayer maps with new Crucible modes, including the previously revealed Rift and Mayhem
• And, of course, last but not least, our biggest six-player Raid yet