I Dropped GFL2 For a Destiny Gacha Game and I’m Not Even Sorry
Been bouncing between Nikke and Reverse 1999 when someone in my Discord mentioned NetEase dropped a Destiny gacha. My first thought was “great, another Diablo Immortal situation.”
But (at least for the moment) there might be something to this. It’s the first FPS gacha that I’ve been really impressed by.
Before anyone asks, no, you don’t need to know anything about Destiny. I tried the original back in 2017, shot some bullet sponges for 20 minutes, got confused, and never touched it again. Rising actually makes way more sense than whatever Bungie’s doing with their new player experience these days.
BIG DISCLAIMER I try not to review any game entirely based on other games by the same publisher or developers but it titles don’t exist in a vacuum.
It is entirely possible that the game is only F2P friendly during launch and goes the same way as Diablo Immortal did.
An AAA FPS Gacha Finally?
Playing as Wolf (your custom character who’s a Lightbearer) feels legitimately good.
You can swap between first and third person whenever, though some abilities lock you into third. After years of turn-based combat and auto-battlers, actually aiming and shooting feels refreshing as hell.
The Haven hub has that MMO feel where you’re running past other players, and honestly seeing actual people instead of just friend codes is nice. Sure, it’s not radical, but when was the last time your gacha game let you headshot something?
NetEase basically took Bungie’s existing addiction loop and slapped gacha mechanics on top.
They did the same thing for Diablo Immortal. High quality game, bringing Diablo to mobile but the monetization of that game is some fo the worst on record.
Would a completely original FPS gacha have the same appeal? Hard to say, but the fact that even non-Destiny players like me are hooked suggests the formula might be more universal than expected.
Presentation & World Design
NetEase went hard on the production values. Full voice acting that doesn’t make me want to mute immediately. The Jangi Metro open world area has these public events that pop up, you just jump in with whoever’s around and blast stuff together.
No party setup, no CP requirements, just shoot.
Level design crushes most gacha dungeons I’ve played. Each raid mission feels distinct instead of being the same corridor with different textures. Someone on the design team actually cared, which is more than I can say for most new gachas that come out these days.
That said, the story’s pretty mid. Maybe Destiny veterans get more out of it, but I’m just here to shoot aliens and collect loot.
Rating: 8/10 (Loses points for no native PC client, but otherwise fantastic quality)
The Actual Gameplay Loop
You’ve got your main Lightbearer with two weapons, primary with infinite ammo, secondary that needs pickups. Characters like Aicora can only use specific weapon types (she’s locked to rocket launchers), which actually makes team building matter.
The raid content needs 2-6 players, depending on the mission. No sweep function, which is annoying, but you can run artifact farming WITHOUT stamina if you want reduced rewards.
When’s the last time a gacha let you actually grind when you wanted to?
Shifting Gates PvP, Pay to Win or Nah?
The PvP mode has you collecting data modules and cashing them in while other teams try to gank you. There’s a “Fair Play” system that normalizes stats, but you still bring your own characters and weapons. So yeah, if they release a broken PvP character, you’re pulling or losing.
First match each week is free though, so even PvE players should grab those rewards. Just don’t be that guy who rage quits when losing, it costs stamina to enter and nobody likes a quitter.
Given that this is a NetEase game… I would not expect F2P or even low spenders to do well in PvP for much longer than launch (at most). I would not play this as a PvP game.
The Progression Treadmill
Here’s where it gets interesting. No weapon banner. You heard that right, weapons drop from raids, not gacha. Your Lightbearer’s power comes from:
- Skill levels (max 18, +6 from dupes)
- Weapon rating and enhancement
- Artifacts with the usual RNG substats
The artifact system actually lets you SHARE pieces between characters since you only field one at a time. After dealing with Genshin’s artifact prison for years, this feels like freedom.
Stamina caps at 360 and refills 120 daily. That’s 3 days before overflow, way more generous than the twice-daily login slavery most gachas demand.
Rating: 7.5/10 (Points off for no sweep, points added for actual farming freedom)
Gacha & Money Stuff
The numbers that matter:
- 1% mythic rate (SSR equivalent)
- 60 hard pity that CARRIES OVER
- 100% rate-up (no 50/50 BS)
- One banner, no weapon gacha trap
- 180 crystals per pull, so 10,800 for guaranteed. Soft pity kicks in early and they actually show you the ramping percentages.
The monthly card is $5 for about 20 pulls worth. Battle pass? Also $5. Not $10, not $15 with a premium track, just $5. After getting fleeced by every other game’s “premium ultra deluxe” passes, this feels almost suspicious.
The whale packs exist, but they’re terrible value as always. The $20 founder’s pack actually seems decent if you’re committing long-term.
Rating: 9/10 (Only because 10/10 would be no gacha at all)
Real World Spending Results
Let me put this in perspective: multiple players are reporting they got all four launch mythics with around $25-30 spent (that’s the $20 founder pack plus monthly card). One British player clocked about 40 hours and managed to collect the full mythic roster with £25.
That’s insane value compared to other gachas, where $30 might not even get you halfway to pity. The free currency flow is generous enough that F2P players can realistically get 2-3 mythics just from launch rewards and early game progression.
You’ll need dupes for max power and all abilities unlocked, but that’s a long-term goal, not a day-one requirement. There’s also a level cap system that prevents rushing to 80 immediately, probably to stop sweats from maxing everything in 48 hours and complaining about no content.
There’s a whole Gwent ripoff card game in here. Like, full 6-turn matches trying to control board points.
Also, Stardew Valley fishing is apparently mandatory in 2025.
The endless artifact mode where you pick roguelike perks? I turned off guns and went full melee with comet punches. Accidentally punched a kamikaze enemy and learned my lesson, but it’s stupidly fun when it works.
You can revert exotic weapon enhancements and only lose 10% gold. Most gachas would laugh at you for even asking.
Why Destiny Veterans Are Actually Loving This
For context, Destiny 2 is currently in rough shape with players grinding the same solo content on repeat.
Rising captures that Destiny 1 feeling where you’re actually running into other players organically during public events, something that’s been missing from D2 for years. The material collection, area reputation grinding, and bounty system create this satisfying gameplay loop that modern Destiny abandoned.
Several veterans are treating this as their Destiny 3 substitute, and honestly, with how NetEase nailed the key feel of being a Guardian (or Lightbearer here), it’s filling that void better than expected.
The “Genshin-like” mechanics might feel weird at first, but they actually complement the shooter gameplay rather than detract from it.
The Genre Pioneer Question
Though some argue that Rising’s success might open the floodgates for more FPS gachas, it’s worth considering whether this is lightning in a bottle.
The game succeeds partly because it’s NOT trying to be a “waifu FPS” like some community members have been begging for, it’s just a solid shooter that happens to use gacha monetization.
On the flip side, if this does well enough, expect every publisher to rush out their own “AAA gacha FPS” within the next two years. Whether they’ll understand what makes Rising work (the actual shooting feels good, characters matter beyond stats, no predatory weapon banners) or just copy the surface-level stuff remains to be seen.
For now, though, Rising stands alone as proof that yes, FPS gacha can work when done right.
Controller Support and Platform Options
Here’s something I didn’t expect, the controller support is actually phenomenal.
While I’m running it on an emulator with a mouse and keyboard, plenty of players are using Xbox controllers on their phones or even casting to smart TVs. One guy in my clan is playing on his Galaxy S23 Ultra with screen share to his TV and says it runs smooth.
iPad players with controllers are also having a good time, though you’ll want to drop to low graphics for stable 60fps on older models. The touch controls are functional but once combat gets hectic, you’ll wish you had physical buttons.
It’s clear NetEase designed this with multiple control schemes in mind, not just as an afterthought.
Real Talk Time
The Good Stuff
- Actual FPS gameplay in a gacha (finally)
- No weapon banner money trap
- 3-day stamina overflow for adults with lives
- Fair monetization that doesn’t feel gross
- Can farm artifacts without stamina limits
- Production values that don’t scream “mobile port”
- Solo account progression instead of managing 50 characters
The Crap
- Need emulator for PC (MuMu works fine though)
- No sweep = manual grind hell
- Story assumes you care about Destiny lore (I don’t)
- Only 4 mythics at launch (more coming obviously)
- PvP will eventually favor whales despite “fair play”
- NetEase baggage from Diablo Immortal
- Too many currencies (typical mobile confusion tactics)
Final Verdict: 8/10
It’s a real game that happens to be a gacha, not a gacha pretending to be a game.
The FPS gameplay works, monetization isn’t insulting, and I think a lot of us were surprised about that.
Will it replace your main game? Probably not. But it’s absolutely worth your daily rotation slot. The Destiny setting might not be for everyone, and console players may dislike it on principle, but for gacha veterans? This is one of the better launches we’ve had this year.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go lose more PvP matches to 12-year-olds with better reflexes than me.