"Destiny," the highly anticipated first-person shooter MMO game from Bungie will launch tomorrow, Sept. 9, for Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Xbox One, as well as Sony's Playstation 3 and Playstation 4.
Video game retailer GameStop previously announced that "Destiny" had become their most pre-ordered video game ever, and now Activision has announced the title as the "most pre-ordered new video game IP in history."
"'Destiny' has been a labor of love and a remarkable creative journey for everyone at Activision and Bungie," said Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg, as reported by GameSpot. "We feel that we have the opportunity to launch something huge - not just into the gaming landscape, but the pop cultural landscape. Arriving at our launch day with this much support and enthusiasm from fans and retailers is downright exciting. Moments like this just don't come around very often," he added.
"'Destiny' is a game we've always wanted to make," said Bungie President Harold Ryan.
The "Destiny" beta version was played by 4.6 million people, and millions were expected to play the full game on its launch day, Activision reported. Servers for the game were switched on Monday at 8 a.m.
Activision also announced a special "Destiny" upgrade plan where a player who buys "Destiny" on the PS3 or Xbox 360 can also get the game on that system's next generation respective counterpart for free. However, this applies to digital purchases only.
"Destiny" fans can also expect additional content in the future in two major expansions, each featuring new story missions, weapons, co-op activities, multi-player maps, armor and gear, according to the game's official site. "Destiny: The Dark Below" is expected to launch in December 2014, with "Destiny: House of Wolves" to follow soon after. Both expansions will be purchasable as a set for $35 or individually for $20 each.
To celebrate the release of "Destiny," the Bungie development team had one of their members jump out of a plane and land outside the studio's headquarters as a special entrance at the developer's community day event today.
Sir Paul McCartney was among the game's music composers.
