Dungeons have been a popular endgame activity in Destiny 2 since they made their debut back during Forsaken. They require fewer people than raids, and are typically less complicated, which makes them certainly appealing. Yet despite how accessible dungeons are, they don't explain anything which can make newer players feel lost.
As part of the Rites of the Nine event, three dungeons have gotten a new difficulty called Explorer Mode. This new difficulty serves as a great way to teach players what they can expect, and here is how it works.
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Explorer Mode Explained
The best way to think of Explorer mode is that it is the equivalent of easy difficulty. There are no respawn restricted zones and respawn time is five seconds instead of 45 seconds. Explorer mode can also be done solo, with a premade fireteam, or you can use matchmaking. Not only that, but you will encounter tooltips throughout the dungeon that help explain mechanics. While navigating through the dungeon, there will be waypoints that will show you where you need to go next.
Waypoints will also be put on important things as well. For example, when you have the Arctrician buff in Spire of the Watcher, a waypoint will appear over each node that you need to shoot, making it much easier to find the next node in the sequence. There are also additional platforms that appear as well in case fireteam members fall behind during a platforming section.
In addition to all of this, certain changes have been made to make encounters less tedious. For example, during the second encounter of Spire of the Watcher you only need to activate one series of nodes after the first DPS phase instead of having to activate all four again.
You can also get loot from dungeons in Explorer mode as well, but the only limitation is that you can't get the Exotic weapon. You also cannot progress any legacy triumphs related to the dungeon either, so you won't be able to progress any seals related to the three dungeons for Rites of the Nine. Ada-1 bounties related to dungeons can be progressed while on Explorer mode difficulty, but it is unclear if this is intended or not. Quests that are part of Rites of the Nine can also be completed in Explorer mode, but at the time of writing the third encounter is bugged and is not giving credit.
So while it is mostly intended for newer players or those who want to learn a dungeon before running it on normal difficulty, Explorer mode is a great feature that will hopefully be expanded on in the future.
Destiny 2
- Released
- August 28, 2017
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- T For TEEN for Blood, Language, and Violence
- Developer(s)
- Bungie
- Publisher(s)
- Bungie
- Engine
- Tiger Engine
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- Cross Save
- yes
- Expansions
- Destiny 2: Forsaken, Destiny 2: Shadowkeep, Destiny 2: Beyond Light, Destiny 2: The Witch Queen, Destiny 2: Lightfall
- Franchise
- Destiny
- Number of Players
- 1-6 (Co-Op)
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- no
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- Platform(s)
- PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PC, Stadia
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
- How Long To Beat
- 100+
- X|S Optimized
- YES
- PS Plus Availability
- Essential, Extra, & Premium (The Witch Queen)
