The ENTIRE Evolution of Destiny METAs

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This is the ENTIRE Evolution of Destiny's META and weaponry! We travel all the way back to 2014 and then progress through each era of the game's history, noting all of the best weapons along the way. The Destiny franchise has created some of the most iconic weapons in all of gaming history, so there is no shortage of weapons to talk about. Gjallarhorn, Thorn, The Last Word, SUROS Regime, Ace of Spades, Pocket Infinity, Red Death... the list goes on. Whether you're a veteran players reliving this nostalgic journey, or a newer player discovering the history of this game, I hope you thoroughly enjoy this movie covering the most fabled weapons in Destiny's 10-year history.
Movie-length videos like this take quite a lot of time to create. This one took several months! There's so much research, planning, scripting, editing, and creative work that goes into long-form videos like this. Please consider supporting my content by becoming a Patron, because without you, big projects like this would not be possible. / shadowdestiny . The perks offered on Patreon are also pretty exceptional... you'll get early access to videos, credits in all my videos, and like 16 other great perks lol. Go check it out.
This video covers the evolution of Destiny's weapons, but it doesn't touch on the overall evolution of the game and its community. After you watch this video, here's a link to my other video covering the entire evolution of the Destiny franchise: • The ENTIRE Evolution o...
I'd like to give a large thank you to all of the Destiny creators who appear in this video. Videos like this rely entirely on historic footage from each period in history, so it would quite literally be impossible to make without the videos from everyone around the community. These creators are all credited in the bottom left of the screen.
Check out my 2nd channel for more Destiny 2 content! ‪@ShadowDestiny2‬
Credit to my Discord, Patreon, and YT channel members for making this vid possible: Priestess, Zack Barton, Apollos Shdw, Jasper Stone, Dawson Gillilan, Beau, Vegito, Flizzeryx, Fluffybun, Xariel, Swaretm, MrCrabominable, Skywalkerzz_, themagicarcher, logand3853, Last Dawn Reactions, Vegito, HunterKiller4k, Agentw0w, USS Dread, Harrison Hodgkins, John Horrocks, Bmo, Darkwolf, tsumi7661, Rob Womble, Jared Reyes, Christian Rojas-Bartlett, Sweeping_Lily, Gary Walters, Major of Maynard, ZoraMarslink, lukeski056, and Liger Zero.
Connect with Shadow:
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Sections:
0:00 Destiny 1 Launch
9:23 The Dark Below
16:15 House of Wolves
21:33 The Taken King
28:59 Rise of Iron
33:26 Destiny 2 Launch
42:06 Curse of Osiris
45:16 Warmind
49:00 Forsaken
1:12:10 Shadowkeep
1:24:27 Beyond Light
1:44:50 The Witch Queen
1:58:48 Lightfall
LEMMiNO - Firecracker
‪@LEMMiNOMusic‬
CC BY-SA 4.0
#Destiny #Destiny2

[@ShadowDestiny]

1) - 🌟 Assemble superheroes in Marvel Strike Force for FREE t2m.io/ShadowDestiny_MSF and enter the promo code VENOMGIFT for 100 Venom Shards, 500 Power Cores, and 5 Premium ORBS! How to easily redeem the promo code 👉 t2m.io/VENOMGIFT_promo 2) - This video took hundreds of hours to create, hope you enjoyed! Please consider becoming a Patron, because without you, big projects like this would not be possible. www.Patreon.com/ShadowDestiny

[@fplgregfrost]

wow chunky long video. Gonna have to go into 'watch later' for now. I still miss the crazy stat bumps of vanilla D1 weapons, like 40 stability or 40 range made so much difference back then! Every gun I levelled up to test out, it was magic. i don't think I missed a bounty for 9 months straight lol.

[@vexingfate09]

Just so you know your Anarchy picture is Telesto. Also I love these videos hope to see more in the near future!

[@MasterCJ117]

I think the biggest missed weapons were the ones that broke Gambit, specifically QueenBreaker and its insane aim-assist, although anything broken since then has gradually become "What weapon is broken in Gambit this week". Off the top of my head the only noticeable ones other than QueenBreaker were Xeno, Truth, Arbalest, Lorentz Driver, and Leviathans Breath.

[@MrMightyZ]

When you mentioned that Spare Rations had an advantage that top players could sense I wanted to give my theory; I believe that very experienced and well versed players like myself who know a lot about Destiny’s mechanics BUT who only has poor to average skill (after 9 years I’m still averaging 1.4) can appreciate aspects like less recoil, better recoil direction, greater stability and especially extra aim assist better than highly skilled players as I’ve noted over the years some of you content creators not caring about aspects I do in certain guns. I believe because your skill is high enough that very small advantages are unnecessary for you and maybe depending on the gun, something like plus 5 aim assist might even go completely unnoticed if you didn’t know. It’s just a theory but I 80% believe it because at my low skill level I get such big improvements from some extra stats.

[@GokuBlack-nr1zf]

I love bump in the night and fire and forget two of my favorite weapons

[@masonzink3086]

Ever since I quit destiny I get some weird nostalgia from the music. It’s very bittersweet.

[@wyattfields5580]

Every time I try to quit it brings me back

[@Jimmy_Strand_YT]

Come back we miss you

[@maxcrss2845]

You should come back and try it again. :)

[@therkokid215]

One of my favorite ppl returned to Destiny this year. We're here when you wanna come back.....

[@renasauceman]

Ever since I still play when I want to I get some weird nostalgia from the music. It’s really good music and everyone likes it. I’m not unique.

[@BurningMoreXP]

29:00 I launched Destiny and I was at this part.. my boot screen said “Lightfall” but I heard “Rise Of Iron”.. this brought a tear to my eye.

[@13Daisys]

Rise of Iron is still waiting for you

[@silentocelot9799]

Rose was originally introduced in Season of Opulence part of the Lumina Exotic Handcannon quest. Revoker came with Season of Opulence.

[@Witherhoard]

Thanks for the autobiography

[@Tickefist]

Lmao

[@jamievalorin1347]

I made the 69th like on this comment

[@brandoncreek5709]

It's just a biography.

[@mbmbmbmbmbmbmbmbmbmbmb]

“Auto” implies that YOU wrote it, but you’re just a blight firing breach load grenade launcher I don’t expect you to know things. All witherhoard know is blight, eat hot chip, and lie

[@gavinterrell9522]

⁠@@mbmbmbmbmbmbmbmbmbmbmb autobiography means that you wrote about yourself, swing and a miss but I like the attitude

[@lilwook2]

I think I speak for everyone when I say DAMN!! This was absolutely worth the wait. Love the content bro. Keep it up!!

[@bruiseleeroy7010]

Indeed Im only 5min in and this vid is a banger

[@auronhardy8423]

I love how in the video when he started to talk about anarchy it was still the telesto image 57:37

[@ajeenius7437]

One does not simply cut away from Telesto.

[@CruisinCuzzi]

@@ajeenius7437💀😂😂

[@cbro79]

Telesto is so powerful it glitched the video

[@Tylerino]

Man, gotta love destiny, through good and bad

[@anxivty]

fr

[@renasauceman]

It’s almost like every game has good and bad and we decided if those matter to us or not.

[@supercato9613]

@@renasauceman When I see how people talk about D2, I wonder if it's that obvious.

[@lankiestfella9797]

@@renasauceman expansive games are always like that, its very hard to keep up with the standard you already set, specially with a game like destiny since it started so good. the only expansive game i can think of that has mantained its quality for a reaaaaally long time is FF XIV, and we all know how much of a mess that game was at launch until they fixed it

[@Hardrive2677]

Fuck yeah

[@tyronebob7792]

THE KHOVOSTOV SHALL REIGN KING FOREVER!

[@faridronin]

We shall witness The Return of The King in the final shape.

[@spawel1]

@@faridronin khvostov boss battle?

[@joboondodo8968]

1:59:00 Dont forget Hard Light, Borealis, and Dead Messenger, who all have The Fundamentals perk, giving them access to all 3 light elements

[@The_Big_Soup3]

This was the first game i played after i got back from my deployment. It'll always have a special place in my heart. It brought back video games for me

[@WDGabe]

Thank you for your service!

[@The_Big_Soup3]

Thanks brother! Much appreciated@@WDGabe

[@XxHUNT3RN4T0RxX]

Imagine Luna’s Howl/Not Forgotten in their prime paired with Conditional Finality today. Trials would be absolute hell.

[@lordpumpkinhead265]

Recluse + Conditional Finality would likely be the meta for Trials if Recluse was in its prime.

[@XxHUNT3RN4T0RxX]

@@lordpumpkinhead265 prime Recluse would put Shayura’s Wrath, Immortal and Unending Tempest all to shame.

[@prismaone3164]

tlw and thorn would still be better smg wouldnt see much use because of the recoil on controller

[@lordpumpkinhead265]

@@prismaone3164 No, no they wouldn't. TLW or Thorn couldn't hold a candle to prime Recluse. The ONLY way they could succeed against it is range, but even then Prime Recluse could still outdamage them all.

[@prismaone3164]

@@lordpumpkinhead265 if the perk is activ yes maybe against thorn but tlw had the lowest kill time ever in game if i remember correctly.

[@cjp3033]

"quite difficult and lengthy grind" does not nearly sell how horrific those exotic sword missions were. i clawed my eyes out, shit myself, was imprisoned for drunk driving, reformed, went to rehab, found a wife, made a family, and finally with great pride realized i was 50% done. possibly the single most infamous missions ever playable in Destiny.

[@Boogiebandit6]

That and the og thorn, my lord they aged me by 20 years each

[@davidfield6223]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@grandphantoon1334]

For the Taken King exotic swords?

[@AnzeohRobinson]

Amazing video! Only problem is that I watched it all the way through and it’s now 2 am on a school night

[@ShadowDestiny]

😆 hope you’re not too tired today. Thank you for watching

[@stoydz]

That is rookie numbers. Try to stay up and only get 1 to 2 hours of sleep on the school schedule, and then we can talk, I was on that type of schedule, during my senior year of high school.

[@sethrussell7771]

@@stoydzwow so cool

[@raybarrows4418]

I still can’t believe how bad D2 launched with how great D1 ended

[@josephalmazan4805]

So true I left for years after the launch of d2 but here I am back in 2024 😅

[@cqb3814]

Do you remember how d1 launched? It was just as bad if not worse.

[@lazyvoid7107]

​@@josephalmazan4805Your fault

[@lazyvoid7107]

D1 shill

[@raybarrows4418]

@@lazyvoid7107 yeah you are

[@pandareemy]

Ikelos shotgun, Dust Rock Blues, Bygones, Man.......I loved that Forskaen era!

[@alphtheor.879]

on the seraph station exotic mission before you "surrender" your weapons to the fallen behind the glass, you can shatter stasis crystals to kill the fallen through the glass so the servitor shows up to an empty room full of fallen bodies (or lack there of?)

[@Twisted117]

A D1 nostalgia trip 😭😭 ty!

[@SuperZucced]

This video gave me goosebumps for 2 hours straight.

[@TallonFickes]

Love the content Shadow. You absolutely kill it on giving the community a sense of nostalgia, appreciate the work you put into your videos

[@Saint-8]

1:58:00 For those that want a little more insight on Rose, it actually came out during season of opulence for the Lumina quest. It had a static roll and was the only 150 to my knowledge that dodged the 150 nerf besides sunshot until Bungie found out and turned it down to a 140. The more you know c:

[@ShadowDestiny]

haha yeah that was funny how it remained 150 accidentally

[@seansilkworth1469]

That run from Destiny launch to Taken King was such a magical experience for it being a console game. A true looter shooter experience with dungeons and eventually raids

[@aecra]

it was fucking great man i got destiny 1 for my xbox 360 in Christmas of 2014 and ill never forget the d1 experience, especially that one tunnel on earth that spawned a shit ton of hive and would drop exotic engrams 💀

[@RobertoArboleda]

Why no mention of the exotic khvostov? It was the first fully customizable exotic, with over 100 perk combinations. A precursor of today's craftable weapons, and its quest was full on nostalgia from the first game.

[@billynahar9861]

The amount of time it must have taken for this to be put together, it’s brilliant Shadow 🙌

[@ShadowDestiny]

❤️

[@Krypz]

6AM for me rn but staying up longer to watch this! ♥

[@yohansong3207]

Thanks, this video literally brought the memories of last 10 years screaming back - the grinds, the heartaches, and the sheer good times searching for certain weapons/rolls.

[@NanjiGaming]

I know these videos you put together take lots of work, thank you for your devotion and effort. There’s so many bittersweet points in Destiny and you seem to have captured pretty much all the ones I experienced where Weaponry was a factor. Good job and thanks, as always.

[@trinininja8386]

As a veteran who started playing in 2014 and stopped playing soon after completing witch queen i really got taken down memory lane here. Great video. You earned a new subscriber😊

[@TheFawse]

The first “must have” weapon I remember was the Shingen-E, a blue auto rifle that all of my friends insisted was totally overpowered. And it was certainly good, but not long after began the reign of SUROS REGIME

[@enterthekyuubi]

It was the Cydonia AR3 for me.

[@Styx_ia]

God, seeing those 300 power levels is insane. All the nostalgia is wonderful

[@johnberry2387]

This was an amazing video. I’ve been playing Destiny for years and I remember hearing and seeing all of these weapons each have their day in the sun. Thank you for an amazing video to watch this weekend

[@ReapThySorrow]

It is true, Gjallarhorn is made, out of dead titan armor. This is why, this is why this game makes me love it.

[@pstrongman602]

Wait… wasn’t Zero hour jokers wild?

[@nautica1972]

Yes bad juju was the exotic mission from opulence

[@2023_DC]

This is just an amazing piece of work, condensing and concisely explaining the (sometimes muddled) story that is Destiny into a succinct, easy to understand timeline. Seriously, well done. 👍🏻

[@vexingfate09]

I love these Evolution videos they give so much nostalgia thank you!

[@Bongwatabaptist]

I remember the first exotic I got in d1 was the ghallahorn in the prison of elders treasure area. My friend who had originally shown me the game was also at my house and he was pissed lmao

[@Phoenix13Fury]

One of the best videos ive seen in a while. Thank you for this. The nostalgia trip alone gave me plenty of smiles and goosebumps. Thru the good and the bad, I can tell you personally this game quite literally saved my life on a few occasions when i was down and out. Now im living my best life, hoping for the best Final Shape we could ask for. I dont disagree with the masses who are concerned/worried/possibly fed up with the inconsistency, but I think we can all agree when we see videos like this, we all had some really great moments to share and memories that are everlasting. Best decade of my life happened parallel to one of my favorite games of the last 10 years. Thanks again for your time, Shadow.

[@J_JoLT42]

Even as someone who has hermit levels of willing ignorance of the PvP meta, I still instantly recognise and have.... strong feelings about many of the guns on this list. It just goes to show how far reaching and impactful unique and powerful weapons can be

[@theneedlessmage6826]

This must have been a colossal undertaking. Thank you so much! So much nostalgia for those early days...

[@Silencers]

Absolute monster of a video. Had this running the whole time while farming master lost sectors

[@justinkeithver]

I'm a D1 vet and played D2 only until the Warmind expansion. Was really hooked into it. This video brought me joy and nostalgia. I was mindlessly nodding my head almost the whole time lol Thank you for this!

[@zjuazyz6240]

Wow. Never have I felt such crazy warm nostalgia watching this! Thanks for making

[@waylonsmith361]

Why did that last little bit about the guardians wielding the weapons make me tear up?

[@whatthe9706]

The Og mountain and recluse combo was one of the most deadly/fun things ever

[@Fire4ward]

Thank you for making this video. I’m sure it took a lot of time and effort to make. It’s really nice to focus on some stuff that Bungie has always been really good at creating: weapons.

[@79bigcat]

Got lost in the shuffle, but shouting out Retrofit Escapade's short stint with enhanced target lock, fourth time's the charm, and the artifact mod that gave it volatile rounds on void kills that turned it into a boss eraser during its debut.

[@Mugiwara2k]

Phenomenal video. Can’t imagine how much time and research this took… well done 👍

[@ElectronsX]

Another great Nostalgic video.

[@namedcrawdad]

i don’t play Destiny 2 anymore but i’m D1 Vet…thank you for making this video. i’m only at 18:29 and the fact that you’re showing concept art i used to day dream about just hits me right in the feels. ❤ thank you 😂

[@Jimmy_Strand_YT]

That my kind of video before getting to bed thanks bring soo much memories ❤

[@jeremygeller9145]

I happened to luck into a god roll hammerhead, back during black armory, that weapon helped me get a 6 guardian kill during an invasion during gambit (shot up three then ran to the spawn and blade barraged) it just so happens that I had teamed up with three destiny vets, who were trying to do a challenge, they asked if I wanted to join their fireteam. I was nervous at first, joining but not using the headset, and I was honest and said, that was more fluke than skill, but they said it was fine. Eventually I grabbed my mic and enjoyed talking while we played, to the point where I joined his clan, this would lead me to make long time friends throughout the entirety of the pandemic many of whom I still talk to when I can. So thanks Bungie, that gun will always hold a special place in my heart.

[@ayamamotohaha5235]

I love that Forbearance is the only Legendary rarity weapon in the thumbnail. Honestly it deserves it.

[@ShadowDestiny]

it is an exotic ;)

[@JoshRosario310]

Love this, thank you for all the effort that went into it

[@GoatSays]

So much nostalgia watching this. Great video!

[@ShadowDestiny]

Thanks!

[@yert6220]

Seeing the people behind the D1 clips like kjhovey and Mr fruit gave me unreal nostalgia

[@joshuaowens570]

Another amazing video. Thanks for what you do!

[@MM-he2iq]

Love the video man, the work you put into it is very very evident!

[@AlterEchoe]

Perfection. Perhaps the best Destiny video ever created. Peak nostalgia, hit all the feels. For everything this game did PERFECTLY, like gunplay, lore, community, Destiny is really the most special game of my almost 40 years as a gamer. Having to delete content due to lack of vault space or sunsetting, and having to pretty much live for the game made me quit years ago. But the memories are extremely powerful.

[@foemonkey123]

the music at 1:28:27 is why i play destiny. i just love the deep stone crypt, all the weapons, and all the music. ill never forget getting my god roll succession to drop and then eventually crafting my heritage

[@theXops9]

cant believe you didnt talk more about touch of malice. That weapon was as iconic as it gets. You couldnt get into most raids if you didnt have it and you could cheese the hell out of oryx. There was even an event back then where you had to kill oryx in one phase and touch of malice was pretty much the only way to do it. Also the esthetic was insane and lord that questline to get it was awsome and took so long. Having touch of malice in your back made you a legend.

[@Pbag1985]

Awesome video. Late to the party vs most of you guys but a big D2 fan now 👍🏽

[@BrailleSounds]

The best part is we’re still playing these pvp maps 10 years later!

[@alexander.sabinin]

Amazing video! While almost not playing Destiny right now, I had a blast watching this!

[@ShadowDestiny]

Glad you enjoyed! I’m well aware most people aren’t playing the game right now, so I’m trying to make stuff that’s still enjoyable even for people who aren’t current players ❤️

[@shadowfoxarchon5021]

Hopscotch pilgrim with lightweight frame giving maxed out stability, advanced target acquisition on the sight, full auto trigger, and enhanced target acquisition as a bonus 4th perk it took me to the lighthouse plenty of times

[@heckyeahohyeah1]

This was a prime time video about destiny and its weapons 🔥🔥🔥

[@Victini0510]

Hey man, just wanna say I really appreciate these videos! I feel Destiny 1 is so forgotten. Destiny 1 means a lot to me and I'm glad to see someone cover the feeling of it so well. All the mystery, hype, and pure fun is still unmatched in the franchise imo.

[@ShadowDestiny]

[@PyroRaiderOasis]

I can see the effort put into this video which is pretty normal for your videos. Took me a few days to watch all of it but enjoyed it.

[@12345apes]

If you got the last word before xur sold it you were the best player in pvp every game, it was a very fun time

[@HydraDominus]

The amount of luck I had with grabbing stuff and rng in d1 is something my buddies still talk about. I picked up gjallarhorn when our had it because "I thought it looked cool" and got crushed for it by them as a "waste". Got THREE mythoclasts in a row within the first week and a half of vault being released as well as 2 amazing roll fatebringers. And got the black hammer. I've never been that lucky ever again in d2 but man do I miss d1. The exotic and legendary weapons were just so much more special in that game

[@soooluscious5636]

Love these long videos you made dude! Keep them coming!

[@artbeyondthewall9720]

Great video. Volt shot came out with plunder and tarnished mettle scout rifle was pretty slept on

[@roguedeathangel]

Man, Destiny at 30fps was ROUGH.

[@corzan721_3]

Yeahhhhh, I did prefer the slower pace of D1 tho can’t lie

[@yourfriend9018]

Yeah tried to go back to d1 for a bit a couple years ago and it felt completely unplayable… ancient servers and a dusty old Xbox probably were half of the suffering but still it genuinely gave me a headache the frame rate was so bad

[@sharkbaitjr_9923]

This video is essentially ~10 years of my life. So much nostalgia and good memories here

[@brianflores8303]

I remember thanks to the weapon re rolling, I had a 1k yard stare for each element for PvE. It felt so good to use back then

[@cell9899]

Same!!!

[@CollaateraL]

Dude your talent for making long form content is incredible. Thank you so much. Amazing video 🫡

[@ShadowDestiny]

🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡

[@hawkeyegough9090]

i remember quitting for the first time because of the Gjallarhorn meta, everywhere you looked it was always "gjallarhorn required"

[@n0bletv]

Loved the video and trip down memory lane! Only thing I wish was added was Doctrine of Passing, Universal Remote, and Blind Perdition.

[@OfficerGarlic]

Dude, what a project, this had to be a ton of work. Way to go, I miss my old Hawksaw.

[@stonedsquirtlee1068]

Whenever I'm hungover, this is my go to channel.

[@saucy_sam3540]

Man we need icebreaker brooo

[@Slug_ssbm]

43:25 to this day I’ve never had more fun in Crucible than I did with the Laser Tag meta.

[@_theloremaster]

Incredible video, thanks for the hard work that went into this

[@AVB40000]

Ive been looking for someone with the hirumared feel but for Destiny, great vid.

[@DarthLevicor]

Wow that’s a long video!!!!!! Well done, Shadow!

[@ZHU777G]

Thanks for all the passion

[@valpen]

As soon as I get a notification that you put up a video, I'm am always so exited. Love the content Shadow.

[@ShadowDestiny]

That means a lot, thank you ❤️

[@roninsghost108]

Thorn was and still is my favourite exotic weapon in all of destiny. It was the first exotic weapon I got

[@zarryis3365]

you could say this unlocked some old engrams for me.

[@Saadx71]

Man, thank you for this nostalgia trip.

[@HarperLylia]

God, I'll never forget when a random blue or green engram decrypted into an Exotic Auto Rifle (Hard Light). I was the only one of my friends to have an exotic for weeks and it was my favorite weapon.

[@iStayReddy]

This video brought such a smile to my face. Such good times!

[@Vyaris]

You should do an evolution of armor video, it’d be so cool to see the purifier robes, bones of ao, and light beyond nemesis again.

[@tenthapollo1062]

I almost completely forgot Hawksaw existed... the 100 stability pulse meta was one of my favourite ever periods in Destiny

[@misli4480]

Great one. I love your documentary style videos 👏

[@maltawhat]

Great video but one thing you got wrong is double damage perks came out with last wish weapons the forge just expanded on them

[@claytonreeves150]

Brigand's Law, Tarnished Mettle, and Sailspy Pitchglass from Season of Plunder were and are amazing weapons. They were also the first ones to come with voltshot.

[@treecko3453]

I remember Invective was one of my go-to exotics in D1 ❤

[@hyper_nova09]

I gotta say Shadow I LOVE your videos like this and the history of destiny, amazing work my guy 👍

[@ShadowDestiny]

Thanks!

[@OucheaLyfestyle]

Ayyyyye that sponsor promo was slick man didn’t even notice for the first few seconds

[@fortycello-yx7ju]

It took me two days to get halfway throught and im still watching it today Loce the content bro