'Destiny' distances itself from PS3 and Xbox 360 in August
The 'Rise of Iron' pack and events like Trials of Osiris and Iron Banner will only be available on PS4, Xbox One.
It was bound to happen, the question was just a matter of when. The "it" I'm referring to, of course, is developer Bungie cutting off support for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of Destiny. In a post on Bungie.net, the company says that starting in August, progression won't be shared among last-gen hardware and the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. "Characters progress separately on two parallel paths," an infographic reads. Importing your character from last-gen hardware to a PS4 or Xbox One and then going back to your old system to play a strike or two with friends means that the experience points and gear earned will no longer carry over.
New content packs (like this fall's Rise of Iron expansion), Trials of Osiris weekly event, Iron Banner event and Live Events like the Valentine's Day-themed Crimson Days or Sparrow Racing League will be going away in a few months. This affects how purchases with the in-game currency bought with real money, silver, work as well. For starters, the in-game "buy silver" button is going away on PS3 and Xbox 360, as are options to buy it via each console's marketplace or online storefront. Any emotes or other cosmetic items purchased with silver on old hardware won't appear on your Guardian the next time you fire up your PS4.
However, all the Nightfall Strikes; featured Crucible playlists; previous raids; Prison of Elders, and, yes, Xûr weapon sales will still be available if you haven't upgraded to a new console yet.
It's honestly kind of impressive that Bungie's been supporting the PS3 and Xbox 360 this long. Third-party publishers and developers stopped releasing last-gen versions of their games awhile ago; Microsoft and Sony cut off the supply of new games before the PS4 and Xbox One launched in 2013.
The timeline for Bungie's cutoff is interesting, though. August is when Microsoft is scheduled to launch the Xbox One S, but the company hasn't nailed down a specific date for that yet. Bungie hasn't outlined when Destiny as it currently exists will change, either. Smart money says both of those will change at about the same time. So relax, there's no reason to upgrade to the current generation just yet if you've been holding out.
