Who hasn’t felt lost in the flood of Bungie announcements lately? They keep dropping new info, and it’s been a bit of a puzzle trying to make sense of it all.
The latest updates about Destiny 2’s future stirred up some confusion, especially around “Edge of Fate” and “Year of Prophecy.” Are they the same thing? What do they mean for the game?
The Year of Prophecy Breakdown
Quick answer: no, they’re not the same. “Year of Prophecy” is the name for Destiny 2’s eighth year of extended content. “The Edge of Fate” is the first of two major expansions kicking off that year. So, one is the big umbrella term, the other is a big chunk inside it.
Year of Prophecy covers all content for Destiny 2 starting July 15, 2025. Bungie is ditching the old seasonal model and going with two paid expansions and two big free updates. It means more players can stick together and enjoy the main story without needing to buy every single piece.
This year also kicks off the Fate saga, a new storyline focused on the Nine – those weird celestial dark matter beings who’ve been poking around the Solar System way before the Traveler showed up.
Roadmap: What’s Coming and When
- Rite of the Nine launched May 6, 2025.
It’s free and works like a prologue for Edge of Fate and the Fate saga.
- Destiny 2: The Edge of Fate lands July 15, 2025, as the first paid expansion.
Core game changes arrive the same day and are available to everyone, not just expansion buyers.
- Ash & Iron follows on September 9, 2025.
Another big free update.
- Destiny 2: Renegades comes December 2, 2025.
The second paid expansion. Bungie calls it “Star Wars-inspired” with a lawless frontier vibe.
- Shadow & Order drops March 3, 2026.
The second free update.
Edge of Fate: What’s in the Expansion
Edge of Fate brings Guardians to Kepler, a new location way out in the Oort Cloud. The Nine’s Emissary invites you there. Why? No one knows yet.
Big changes come with dark matter powers. You get a new ability called Matterspark. It lets you bind to dark matter and change form to squeeze through tight spaces, dash farther, jump higher, or even turn into a wrecking ball. Other tools include the Relocator Cannon for teleporting using Fallen dark matter tech, and Mattermorph, which lets you reshape the battlefield using dark matter and Strand.
Free Updates for Everyone
Even if you skip the expansion, you’re still getting some serious upgrades:
- The Portal: a new screen for jumping into whatever you feel like. Fireteam Ops, Pinnacle Ops, Crucible Ops, and the new Solo Ops for fast, 10-minute solo runs. There’s deep customization with 50 new modifiers and rotating activities.
- Armor 3.0 and a new Tiering System: set bonuses for wearing the same armor type, stat reworks, and armor starting fully charged. New stats like weapon damage boosts, old stats can hit 200 now, and everything has five tiers. Higher tiers mean better gear with bonuses, but you’ll need to grind the harder stuff to get it.
- A shooting range is coming three weeks after Edge of Fate launches. You can test your loadout and damage numbers with your full raid team.
Pre-Order Options and Bonuses
Pre-order options:
- Standard Edition
- Year of Prophecy Edition (Edge of Fate Renegades)
- Year of Prophecy Ultimate Edition
If you pre-order Ultimate or Collector’s, you get the Exotic Sniper Rifle: New Land Beyond instantly, with its Ornament and Catalyst.
Final Word
To wrap it up: Year of Prophecy is the full year of content. Edge of Fate is the first major expansion in that cycle. Bungie is shifting from smaller seasonal drops to big, meaty updates that more players can enjoy together.