‘Destiny’ Sparrow Racing League 2016 Unveil Happening At PlayStation Experience
Bungie already confirmed that the Sparrow Racing League will return this December for Destiny: Rise of Iron. Now the developer slyly confirmed PlayStation 4 and Xbox One owners will get their first peak at the racing event during the PlayStation Experience in Anaheim, California, in a couple of weeks.
It should be no surprise the Sparrow Racing League event for 2016 will be unveiled during the PlayStation Experience, as Sony and Bungie teamed up to reveal it last year during the same event. Community Manager David “Deej” Dague placed a thinly veiled confirmation in the weekly Bungie update that the same will happen during this year’s PSX, which takes place on Saturday, December 3, and Sunday, December 4.
“The week after, we’ll be packing our bags for Anaheim, CA. The particulars of our mission are still a mystery. We’ll cross that finish line soon,” Dague wrote.
If the timeline from last year repeats, Sparrow Racing League should go live the following Tuesday, December 6.
Last year’s inaugural Sparrow Racing League ran for a month and offered players a chance to race against others across two maps. There was also a $10 record book that could be purchased for additional rewards in the form of more stylish racing suits and Sparrows.
Bungie hasn’t offered any details about this year’s racing event, except to make overtures toward it being a permanent fixture. Whether that turns out to be the case or not remains to be seen.
Still, Destiny players looking forward to SRL’s return should expect to see the return of the Record Book likely with some expanded quest material. Bungie did the same with Festival of the Lost by adding a little extra to this year’s event over the previous year.
An extra racing map or two is likely a safe bet as well. The Mars and Venus maps in last year’s event were fun, but quickly became too repetitive to support a month-long event. A new map set in the Plaguelands seems most probable, but locations on the moon or even Oryx’s Dreadnaught could be fun additions as well. The latter, especially so, since Sparrows can’t be used in that patrol location at all currently.
Beyond that, players will match up in races featuring six players through tracks filled with boost gates and enemy minions shooting at them. End-of-race rewards included racing suit armor, as players worked through a Quest towards a Class S License from Amanda Holiday, plus various bounties. Could more be included this year?
What other improvements that could come to Destiny‘s Sparrow Racing League this year remains to be seen. This writer suggested four improvements last year to improve the mode’s playability and provide some additional variety.
The obvious improvement is to clean up the controls and physics in Sparrow Racing. There were times when hitting gates did not register a boost and invisible rocks or barriers could send a Sparrow racer bouncing in the wrong direction. The “Air Control” perk automatically pushed the Sparrow lower when jumping too, which could make pulling off tricks more difficult.
Other suggestions include a League or Ladder system to match up players of roughly the same skill with the ability to move up and down leagues based on performance. This would be similar to the racing leagues used in Forza Motorsport 6 and would help make the event more competitive. The ability to compare track and lap times, tricks, wins, and other stats with friends via the Destiny app would be welcome too.
A “Mayhem” like Sparrow Racing mode which allows players to use weapons, abilities, or supers could be a fun spin-off mode to make racing a little more like Super Mario Kart. The ability to customize Sparrows would be a nice touch as well, and Bungie does offer some weapon and armor customization via Ornaments now. It seems unlikely that this will come to the Sparrow Racing League anytime soon, but one can cross their fingers.
What do you want to see in the Destiny Sparrow Racing League this year? Sound off in the comments below.
[Featured Image by Bungie]
