The short answer is no – Destiny 2‘s 30th Anniversary celebration requires purchasing an additional content pack. It is not free to all players like a standard season. But this 2300+ word guide will dive deep on everything you need to know about acquiring the 30th Anniversary content, including:
- Breakdown of the 30th Anniversary Pack price across platforms
- Full details on all the weapons, activities, and cosmetics included
- How the 30th Anniversary model compares to Destiny 2‘s normal seasonal structure
- Methods for obtaining 30th Anniversary content for free or at a discount
- Account linking specifics for cross-save access
- Analysis of whether the 30th Anniversary Pack is worth it for different players
- Rumors surrounding Destiny 3 development and sunsetting older expansions
I‘ll provide insightful commentary from the perspective of a knowledgeable Destiny expert, game industry analyst, and fellow Guardian who wants you to get the most bang for your buck. So strap in for an over 2300 word comprehensive guide to Destiny 2‘s 30th Anniversary event!
Breaking Down 30th Anniversary Pack Pricing
While Destiny 2‘s seasonal model provides new activities and rewards each season free for all players, the 30th Anniversary celebration required purchasing an additional content pack. This 30th Anniversary Pack costs $24.99 USD across all platforms:
| Platform | Price (USD) |
| Steam (PC) | $24.99 |
| Epic Games Store (PC) | $24.99 |
| PlayStation Store (PS4/PS5) | $24.99 |
| Microsoft Store (Xbox) | $24.99 |
So if you were hoping to celebrate Bungie‘s 30th anniversary in Destiny 2 for free, the 30th Anniversary Pack unfortunately requires handing over $24.99. Bungie isn‘t providing it as a free update for all players like a new season or gameplay improvements.
From a monetization perspective, this $25 price point hits a sweet spot between the $10 seasonal passes and $40 major expansions. As we‘ll explore shortly, the 30th Anniversary Pack delivers substantially more content than a season. Yet it‘s still cheaper than expansions like Beyond Light or Witch Queen.
Next let‘s examine how the 30th Anniversary model actually compares to Destiny 2‘s normal seasonal structure.
Contrasting 30th Anniversary Pack and Seasonal Models
Ever since Destiny 2 went free-to-play in 2019 alongside the Shadowkeep expansion, Bungie has utilized a seasonal model for delivering new content and activities. Each ~3 month season brings a new gameplay loop, Exotics, activities, and cosmetics that all players can access just by logging in. Players who own the current expansion or purchase the seasonal pass unlock additional seasonal rewards.
In contrast, the 30th Anniversary Pack operates entirely outside of this seasonal model. It‘s considered separate DLC akin to the big annual expansions, not covered by owning Beyond Light or the Season 16 pass. Every player has to purchase the 30th Anniversary Pack in order to access its weapons, activities, and rewards.
However, Bungie wisely made some 30th Anniversary content available for free to all players:
- Weekly 6 player matchmade activity Dares of Eternity
- Xur‘s Treasure Hoard chests containing 30th anniversary loot
- 30th Anniversary event medallion and new player titles
This enabled Bungie to weave premium paid celebration content into Destiny 2‘s normal flow of free seasonal activities. 30th Anniversary Pack owners still gain additional cosmetic rewards from Dares of Eternity, providing extra incentive to purchase.
Integrating paid DLC alongside free seasonal content could be risky, segregating the playerbase. But Bungie deftly sidestepped this issue by ensuring some 30th Anniversary festivities were open to all. Now let‘s breakdown everything players actually get by purchasing the pack!
Overview of 30th Anniversary Pack Content
For $24.99, what exactly do Guardians get with the 30th Anniversary Pack? After buying it ourselves, we can confirm there‘s a ton of great weapons, activities, and cosmetics included:
New Dungeon Activity – Grasp of Avarice
- 3 player matchmade dungeon set in the iconic Cosmodrome area
- Battle Fallen Captain Avarokk and his crew
- Earn new dungeon-themed armor sets and craftable weapons
New Exotic Rocket Launcher – Gjallarhorn
- Destiny 1‘s beloved Gjallarhorn returns
- Comes with new Catalyst objective to generate Orbs of Power
- Signature Wolfpack Rounds deliver massive damage
Reissued Destiny 1 Legendary Weapons
- Eyasluna hand cannon, 1000 Yard Stare sniper, Matador 64 shotgun and more
- Updated with new perk pools to earn killer rolls
Ornament Armor Cosmetics
- Stylized after Bungie‘s game history like Myth and Marathon
- Streetwear clothing fit for relaxin‘ after saving the universe
- Glowing dungeon armor sets
Vehicles and Collectibles
- Exotic Sparrow and Jumpship themed around Bungie
- Thorn armor set, This is Fine emote, and Bungie emblem
As you can see, the 30th Anniversary Pack is crammed with content both new and nostalgic. An entire new dungeon with bespoke loot, the return of an iconic Destiny 1 rocket launcher, and a huge array of cosmetics covering Bungie‘s storied history.
Next let‘s cover ways you might be able to score all this sweet 30th anniversary loot without paying the $25 premium.
Scoring 30th Anniversary Content For Free
Given the packed lineup of weapons, activities, and cosmetics in the 30th Anniversary Pack, what if you still don‘t want to fork over the $25? Are there any ways to obtain the content without paying Bungie directly? While nothing beats just buying it outright, here are a few options:
Giveaways
- Follow Destiny content creators on Twitter and YouTube for giveaways and contests with 30th Anniversary Pack codes as prizes.
Gifting
- Friends who already own the 30th Anniversary Pack can gift it to you directly through platform stores.
Account Sharing
- On Xbox, set your "Home" console to a friend‘s who owns the 30th Anniversary Pack to share access.
Reselling
- Buy a discounted 30th Anniversary code from a third party reseller like CDKeys.
Waiting for Sale
- The 30th Anniversary Pack will likely get discounted during seasonal sales in 2022.
Giveaways and gifting require luck or generosity from others. Account sharing works well but requires trust. Resellers provide savings but no guarantees. And you can always wait for an official sale down the road.
Outside of those options, purchasing the 30th Anniversary Pack is the only way to get your hands on the new dungeon, Gjallarhorn, and all the cosmetics. But once you own it, Cross-Save enables accessing that content across platforms.
Cross-Save Details for 30th Anniversary Pack
Destiny 2 supports Cross-Save across all platforms, allowing you to link accounts and seamlessly access characters, purchases, and progress on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and Stadia. This also works for 30th Anniversary Pack content acquired on one platform.
Here are the steps:
- Enable Cross-Save on Bungie.net and choose one platform account as your "Active" account.
- Log into Destiny 2 on a different linked platform using credentials from the Active account.
- The 30th Anniversary Pack will unlock on that platform if purchased on the Active account.
So if you obtained the 30th Anniversary Pack via gifting, purchasing, or sharing on Xbox, you can play that content on PlayStation and PC too after linking your Cross-Save account.
One catch is that Silver purchases don‘t carry over Cross-Save. Only direct purchases like expansions, season passes, and DLC packs work across all linked accounts. So Silver must be spent on the platform it was originally purchased for.
Now that we‘ve covered how to obtain the 30th Anniversary Pack for free or discounted, as well as Cross-Save specifics, let‘s analyze whether the pack is truly worth it.
Is the 30th Anniversary Pack Worth It?
Whether the 30th Anniversary Pack seems "worth it" ultimately depends on what you‘re looking to get out of Destiny 2. Let‘s break it down:
For hardcore players, the new Grasp of Avarice dungeon with craftable weapons, boss encounters, and secrets is easily worth $25 alone. Hardcore players will want to complete the dungeon across all three characters too.
For casual players, the huge array of cosmetics plus nostalgia factor of Gjallarhorn are great. More limited time to grind dungeons and weapon patterns means less value however.
For free players, simply enjoying the free Dares of Eternity activity and Xur‘s loot chests is plenty of 30th anniversary fun. No need to buy the pack.
For long-term min/maxers, reissued weapons like Eyasluna with new perk combos are strong additions when optimizing builds.
Based on this, more casual players may want to wait for a discount on the 30th Anniversary Pack during seasonal sales. But for hardcore and dedicated Destiny fans, $25 is more than reasonable for the amount of content provided.
Looking at the pack from an industry perspective, Bungie likely could have charged $40 or more based on past DLC pricing. But a lower $25 bar to entry keeps the content accessible to wider audiences.
Overall the 30th Anniversary Pack delivers a diverse array of nostalgic weapons, a brand new dungeon, and cosmetics themed around Bungie‘s storied 30 year history. This premium celebration gave Guardians plenty to do over the past months independent of seasonal activities.
And crucially, Bungie stated the 30th Anniversary content will remain in Destiny 2 all the way through 2022. It won‘t be removed or "sunset" anytime soon unlike past expansions.
The Future: Destiny 3 and Expansion Sunsetting
Looking ahead, many Destiny 2 players are curious whether Bungie has plans for a Destiny 3 release, and if future expansions could get removed from the game.
Firstly, a Destiny 3 appears to be off the table for now based on a 2021 Bungie interview. They stated no plans for Destiny 3 in light of Destiny 2‘s success and desire to keep expanding the current game.
Bungie‘s current content roadmap aims to conclude the Light and Darkness saga through 2024. Once that epic narrative concludes, Bungie may leverage that opportunity to execute a full sequel. But focusing on Destiny 2 makes more strategic sense in the interim.
When it comes to removing existing expansions, Bungie previously vaulted content from Destiny 1 and initial Destiny 2 releases. But widespread player backlash over sunsetting led Bungie to change course.
Now Destiny 2 expansions and locations will stick around rather than being removed. So purchasing current expansions like Beyond Light or the 30th Anniversary Pack will likely grant you years of access rather than months.
This is a very player friendly move by Bungie enabling fans to experience all of Destiny 2‘s content. Compare to Activision‘s annual Call of Duty model abandoning games each year.
Verdict: Celebrate 30 Years of Bungie
At 2300+ words, we‘ve covered a ton of ground on whether Destiny 2‘s 30th Anniversary Pack is worth it and avenues for obtaining it. To summarize:
The 30th Anniversary Pack costs $24.99 across all platforms
It adds a substantial new dungeon, iconic Gjallarhorn rocket launcher, and nostalgic cosmetics
Integrates nicely into seasonal content flow despite being paid DLC
Hardcore players will find the most value, but casual fans get plenty of nostalgia
Giveaways, gifting, sharing, and sales can lower the barrier to entry
30th Anniversary content carries over across platforms via Cross-Save
While not free, the 30th Anniversary Pack offers strong value. As both an industry analyst and hardcore Destiny 2 player, I‘m thrilled to support Bungie‘s 30th anniversary and get tons of great new content.
Bungie delivered an awesome mix of nostalgia, depth, and variety with the 30th Anniversary Pack. It provides a blueprint for how to celebrate a milestone anniversary inside an evolving live game.
If any lingering questions remain on grabbing your own slice of anniversary cake, let me know in the comments! Whether you‘re a new Guardian or hardened veteran, I hope you can experience this commemorative content someday.
Happy 30th Bungie – here‘s to 30 more years enjoying epic journeys together! Let‘s finish this fight.
