Our Take on TWAB – Roadmap Updates

When I was growing up, we had a popular saying. Quick. Cheap. Good. You can have two out of the three, but not all three.…Continue readingOur Take on TWAB – Roadmap Updates

When I was growing up, we had a popular saying. Quick. Cheap. Good. You can have two out of the three, but not all three. In other words, you can have something quick and cheap but it will be low quality (like train station sushi). You can have something quick and high quality, but it will be expensive (last minute airline tickets). You can have something cheap and good, but it will take time. Which brings us to the latest This Week at Bungie.

The Feb 22nd TWAB brings the news that now everything originally announced is going to make it into the originally proposed dates. Some items have been pushed back to ensure that they meet quality standards. In the software world, that means they work as intended with minimal bugs and cheats.

Here is a quick recap of the roadmap changes. The 1.1.4 release is slated for March 27. The 1.2 release is slated for May. Moved to 1.1.4: Exotic repetition reduction and Nightfall Strike unique rewards. Moved to 1.2: Exotic weapon and armor sandbox changes. Below is the revised roadmap.

The February release still contains a ton of new features. Auras are getting collapsed into the emblem system, so arming an emblem will give the corresponding aura to a character. The emblems will show statistics, including Crucible kills, both total and by guardian type. These will have different logos, unlocked after completing various feats (i.e. kill 1000 warlocks). Similar scoring systems are in place for the Nightfall and the Leviathan.

Some additional new features have been named for “Spring 2018” but have not been given hard dates, like Vault expansion and Tee’s favorite, multiple emotes.

Xur is in the Tower, hanging out with my people, the Space Goths. Follow the icon to Dead Orbit and go up the stairs. (For a laugh at Dead Orbit’s expense, have your ghost scan the terminal there.) Here is his inventory this week:

Crimson, Exotic hand cannon: 29 Legendary Shards
Graviton Forfeit, Hunter helmet: 23 Legendary Shards
Helm of Saint-14, Titan helmet: 23 Legendary Shards
Vesper of Radius, Warlock chest: 23 Legendary Shards
Fated Engram: 97 Legendary Shards
Three of Coins: 31 Legendary Shards

The Crimson is pretty cool. It fires three-round bursts, so you can shoot an enemy in the groin and chest and finish with a head shot. The Silver Bullet ornament makes it look spectacular.

Finally, as the resident sports ball member of the cast, let me just say Happy Anniversary. February 22nd marks the 38th anniversary of the Miracle on Ice, where a group of amateur players, coached by Herb Brooks, defeated the dominant team from the Soviet Union. That team kept the Soviets from a record fifth straight gold medal. This year, the United States women’s hockey team won gold, preventing the Canadians from achieving that record fifth straight gold.