If you needed a sign of the times that it’s probably best we all migrate future software to new-gen consoles only, this might be it.
Destiny’s The Taken King expansion is available only as a digital download, and it requires so much hard drive space, it can’t even fit on certain models of last generation PS3s and Xbox 360s.
The expansion will take up 10GB on Xbox 360 when all is said and done, and on PS3, though it’s also 10GB in the end, it requires 20GB free while it’s being installed. Needless to say for early model PS3s and 360s with ~20GB hard drives, that’s either extremely difficult to manage, or in some cases, downright impossible.
So, what to do? Obviously a hard drive upgrade is a good option if you’re still sticking with a console that old, but that can be an unwanted expense.
But don’t worry, it seems Activision has you covered. Recognizing this is a pretty unique problem (most DLC packs are not this large, plus a lot of other Destiny content is also probably installed on the drive), they’ve come up with a solution for those with the tiniest of hard drives. From their official support page:
“If you are validated as an existing and active Destiny player on one of the 20GB consoles as of September 15, 2015, and you submit your validation requirements to us no later than December 31, 2015, we will assist you in finding the right solution for your console’s storage space.”
The “right solution,” according to some who have gone through with this process, is that Activision will actually send you a free 32 GB memory stick so you can store The Taken King on it externally. I’m not quite sure I’ve ever heard of a publisher doing anything like that, but such is the strange time we live in.
I wrote the other day about how Metal Gear Solid 5 sales have indicated that only 5% of players are picking up the game on 360/PS3 at this point. It’s been a downward trend since the launch of Xbox One and PS4, but that was the lowest margin of any major game I’ve seen.
Destiny has been one game constantly cited as an example of being dramatically held back by catering to last-gen players, having to scale back on everything from level size to vault space. It’s been unclear when Destiny is going to make the leap and leave last-gen consoles behind for good, and that could have happened with The Taken King, but the base is still strong enough to warrant drastic measure like what we’re seeing here.
Rather, it seems that when Destiny 2 rolls around in fall 2016 (still a rumor, but more or less gospel, in my eyes) then we won’t be seeing PS3 and 360 content at that point. Frankly, it’s kind of a miracle the game even runs on last-gen consoles at all at this point, much like Metal Gear Solid 5.
I’m definitely not mocking those who are still stuck with 20GB last-gen consoles. I had four different 20GB Xbox 360s (thanks RROD!) and I was deleting stuff to install new DLC right until I got my Xbox One. And now, hilariously enough, I’m back to deleting entire games off my 500GB XB1 because it’s gotten too full from digital downloads. I can only imagine trying to work within the confines of 20GB again. The heart breaks just thinking about it.
So, if hard drive space for The Taken King is what ails you, see if Activision will help you out with a free memory solution. And let’s all get together and talk about how awful hard drive space issues are consoles in general, as the new 1TB upgrades aren’t even going to cut it pretty soon.
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What should Destiny do with its $500M budget? Watch below:
