Bungie has revealed the disabled items list for Saturday's Desert Perpetual raid contest mode, and it's one of the most restrictive we've seen. Four major Exotic weapons won't function during the 48-hour world's first race, forcing day-one teams to rethink their strategies completely.
The banned weapons include Outbreak Perfected, Third Iteration, Choir of One, and Icebreaker. Outbreak Perfected's inclusion surprised many players since it's become the go-to Primary for DPS phases when Special and Heavy ammo runs dry. Third Iteration, the new Exotic Scout from Season of Reclamation, made the list because it's currently dealing more damage than intended with anti-barrier mods. After Contest Mode's release, Bungie has added more gear to the Disabled Weapons list, now featuring Barrow Dyad, Hierarchy of Needs, Grand Overture, as well as a significant amount of Weapon Mods.

Players can still equip these weapons, but they won't work inside the raid. Bungie may add more items to the list before Saturday's 10 AM Pacific launch.
Edge of Fate Gets Mixed Reviews Despite Strong Story
The expansion launched Tuesday to lukewarm reception from the community. Steam reviews currently sit at "mixed," and concurrent player numbers are a fraction of previous DLC launches. The community seems split between praising the narrative and cinematics as franchise-best while criticizing fundamental system changes.
Edge of Fate introduced Armor 3.0, new power progression, and the Portal activity system - changes that overhaul how Destiny 2 works at its core. Some players see these as necessary foundation work for the game's future. Others find the changes disruptive to established gameplay loops.
Bug Fixes Target Weapon Balance and Technical Issues
Bungie outlined fix timelines for the expansion's launch problems. Update 9.0.0.3 drops Tuesday, July 22nd, targeting Third Iteration's damage bug along with incorrect ammo gains on Area-Denial Grenade Launchers, Rocket Sidearms, and Rocket Launchers with Bipod perks. Additional Kepler-related crashes will also get fixes.
The following Tuesday (July 29th), update 9.0.0.4 will address Matterspark motion sickness issues, Holofoil visual problems, and the Tangled Web perk not suspending Champions properly.
Several high-priority issues remain under investigation. Players report getting locked out of Edge of Fate missions after leaving early. PlayStation 5 users face audio problems that can lead to crashes, while PlayStation 4 players crash when entering the Tower. Xbox users also report intermittent audio issues.
Conquest activities have been disabled entirely until Bungie can deploy fixes.

Ammo System Overhaul Requires Build Changes
The expansion's ammo changes have generated significant player feedback, prompting Bungie to explain the new mechanics. Ammo bricks drop more frequently but contain less ammunition per pickup. Players need to invest in specific mods and stats to maintain steady ammo supplies.
All weapons except Swords now have an Ammo Generation stat that affects how much they contribute to ammo meters. Players can boost this through Ammo Generation armor mods on chest pieces or weapon-specific Bandolier and Abundant Ammo mods.
Finder mods on helmets directly scale meter gains for corresponding ammo types and stack up to three times. Scavenger mods on legs provide extra ammo on pickups for matched weapons. The new weapon stat range from 100-200 also offers escalating chances for ammo bricks to contain bonus ammunition.
Bungie's response essentially tells players to adapt their builds rather than expecting system changes.
Season Reclamation Content Schedule
Beyond the immediate raid focus, Season Reclamation introduces Solo Ops, Fireteam Ops, and Pinnacle Ops - new activity playlists spanning Sol System destinations including Kepler. The Portal system will host weekly content drops through September.
Next Tuesday brings Onslaught: Midtown and Onslaught: Widow's Court to Fireteam Ops, plus the Starcrossed Exotic Mission in Pinnacle Ops. The week of July 29th launches Arms Week with Hand Cannon focus, returns Trials of Osiris with new armor sets, and opens The Coil activity with three different play paths.
August 5-19 hosts the Solstice event alongside Grandmaster Fireteam Ops matchmaking. Heavy Metal returns September 2nd, followed by the major Ash & Iron update on September 9th.
The September update brings back the Plaguelands and introduces Reclaim - a three-player mission where limited resources make team coordination essential. The Portal will expand with additional activities, customization options, new weapons and armor, plus an Ultimate difficulty level across all ops types.
Booster weeks will provide gameplay buffs throughout the season. Special Surge starts next week, buffing Special ammo drops in all PvE Portal activities.
Contest Mode Preparation and Power Requirements
Teams preparing for the world's first race only need power level 100 to participate in contest mode. Completing Edge of Fate's campaign on legendary difficulty provides sufficient power through mission drops rather than a completion bundle.
Side quests and ability chests on Kepler offer powerful gear rewards. Players who clear the entire Kepler map can reach around 150 power just from campaign content and planetary activities. This approach proves significantly faster than grinding Portal activities for power gains.
The Portal system's architecture allows quick event implementation through dedicated tabs, letting players access time-limited activities like Arms Week and Solstice without complex menu navigation.
Exclusive Emblems and Streaming Rewards
The Desert Perpetual offers exclusive emblems for participants. The "Timeline's Blade" emblem goes to teams completing all encounters during the 48-hour contest period, but Bungie won't show it until after world's first completion - suggesting major story implications.
The "Third Unknown" emblem features Nine-themed aesthetics and will be available to all players completing the raid on any difficulty. Community rewards include the Power Hues emblem for streamers broadcasting during the race and the Golden Relief emblem for viewers gifting subscriptions to raid streamers.
Technical Challenges Mar Console Experience
Console players continue experiencing significant technical difficulties. PlayStation 5 users report audio issues that may lead to crashes, while PlayStation 4 players crash when entering the Tower. Xbox users face similar intermittent audio problems.
These technical challenges, combined with various soft-lock scenarios and activity-specific bugs, highlight the expansion's troubled launch period. The disabled Conquest activities remove a key endgame playlist temporarily.
Future Expansion Plans for Epic Raid
Bungie teased future expansion of what they call the "Epic Raid" following September's Ash & Iron update. This suggests additional mechanical complexity and content rewards planned beyond the raid's initial implementation.
The community remains cautiously optimistic, with many players acknowledging that the raid's success will likely determine the expansion's overall reception. Edge of Fate's long-term standing may ultimately depend on whether Saturday's raid launch demonstrates the expansion's potential or highlights persistent fundamental issues.
Despite mixed reception and technical challenges, Edge of Fate represents Bungie's commitment to foundational changes supporting Destiny 2's future development. The Portal system, Armor 3.0 implementation, and revised progression mechanics may prove beneficial as the community adapts to new systems. Saturday's contest mode launch will test these changes under high-stakes conditions with several powerful weapons disabled and technical issues still pending resolution.