Destiny 2's Next Gambit Labs Experiment Turns Invaders Into Sneaky Mote Thieves

Bungie has detailed new plans for its PvEvP mode Gambit in Destiny 2, which it'll be trialing in Gambit Labs next week. Destiny 2's labs are designed to introduce experimental changes to its game modes before implementing and releasing them properly into the wider sandbox, and for Gambit Labs, it'll be experimenting with how Motes are drained from each team's bank.

Instead of having Motes drain when two or more Blockers are active on the field, Bungie will be making this the job of the opposing team's invader. Essentially an overpowered Guardian who can disrupt the Mote-collecting process by eliminating Guardians on your team and causing them to drop all collected Motes, Invaders will also function as a sneaky Mote Thief in Gambit Labs.

When an Invader is on the field, one Mote drains directly from your bank and into the invader's bank for every second that they're on the field. That's a massive change to how they operate, as invasions can turn the flow of a match instantly under this new setup. While most Invaders will gun for players in the 30 seconds that they're active on the field, having them play hide-and-seek can derail a rush to summon a Primeval boss immensely.

With an Invader active, players will be faced with the option of eliminating Taken forces or dropping everything to hunt for the rival Guardian who is siphoning their Motes away. Bungie will monitor gameplay and feedback from this mode before deciding on the future of Gambit.

Originally introduced in Destiny 2's Forsaken expansion, Gambit has proven to be a unique mode. With The Witch Queen expansion, Bungie tweaked the player-versus-environment-versus-player mode to make its high-risk and high-reward gameplay more streamlined. Recent changes--that Gambit Labs had a hand in introducing--made matches a little tougher to win and threw new spanners into the mix.

There's still work to be done though, and as detailed in Phil Hornshaw's Iron Banter column, a few more changes could make Gambit a more crucial part of the overall Destiny 2 experience.

Elsewhere in the Destiny 2 sandbox, a number of other changes are coming in Season 17. Regular weapons are getting fine-tuned, forgotten Exotic guns are getting buffed, and aerial combat is going to require more investment from players if they want to maintain vertical supremacy.