Despite being announced four months ago very little is known about Shadow of the Erdtree, the DLC follow-up toElden Ring.In the absence of official information, any theories about what content will be added in the upcoming DLC are purely speculation. As fans dig through the lore ofElden Ringin order to glean clues about the upcoming changes, an unlikely source might have exactly what the doctor ordered to spice upElden Ring’s multiplayer offerings:Destiny 2.
In contrast to the high praise thatElden Ring’s story and single-player experience received, its PvP has often been criticized. On release,Elden Ringonly offered PvP in the form of Invasions, which saw hostile players pop in and out of a player’s single-player playthrough. Later,Elden Ringadded the Colosseum, which allowed players to engage directly in PvP combat in a standardized arena, and despite their drawbacks, blending these modes with an idea fromDestiny 2could work perfectly.
RELATED:Elden Ring’s Map Lacks The Best Thing About Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
What is Destiny 2’s Gambit Mode and Why It Would Work in Elden Ring
Put simply,Destiny 2’s Gambit modeis a PvPvE experience. Two sets of teams—each comprised of four players—enter into identical scenarios and compete against one another to bank enemy-dropped tokens, Motes of Darkness. In essence, Gambit is a race against an opposing team to see who can finish PvE content faster.
If that was all there was to Gambit mode, it would already work extremely well inElden Ring, where players already boast about their ability to slay difficult bosses and actively compete against one another in speedruns, butDestiny 2’s Gambit mode throws another wrench into the works that would make it even more tailor-made for theElden Ringexperience.
During a Gambit match, depositing enough Motes of Darkness will spawn a Blocker, an enemy creature that is meant to interrupt the enemy team’s players from accessing their own bank. Deposit enough Motes of Darkness and players can send one of their own teammates to the enemy arena to disrupt them in the fashion ofElden Ring’s PvP Invasions.
At the end of each Gambit match, when the banks are full, a Primeval—a boss-like creature—is spawned and the teams have to race to defeat their Primeval first. During this point, killing enemy players heals their Primeval, putting them further behind in the race. Even in light ofGambit mode’s drawbacks, it lays a useful blueprint for titles likeElden Ring.
How Destiny 2’s Gambit Mode Could Be Tailored for Elden Ring
As of the Colosseum update,Elden Ringalready has all the ingredients for implementing a Gambit-like mode. It already has team battles in the United Combat mode, and it already has the capacity for Invasions. IfElden Ringwas to take those modes and pair them with its unparalleled boss fights, it would do a lot to address fans' criticisms of thelack of variety in the Colosseum modes.
The chaos of a mode like Gambit works extremely well in a fast-paced shooter likeDestiny 2, but it would have to be dialed back to suitElden Ring. Rather than a 4v4 battle, a PvPvE mode inElden Ringwould likely work better with fewer players, either in a 2v2 or 3v3 setting. In an effort of simplicity,Elden Ringcould forego the idea of collecting and banking tokens, and introduce a Gambit-like mode as a race through a gauntlet ofElden Ring’s most iconic bosses. Invasions could behave as they already do, with teams taking on a great risk by sending one of their players to disrupt the enemy team while leaving fewer players to deal with difficult boss fights.
Elden Ringis available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
MORE:Elden Ring’s Shadow of the Erdtree Should Take Inspiration From This Location
