Destiny 2: Should Bungie bring back No Land Beyond

The No Land Beyond is a classic Exotic from the days of the first Destiny. It was introduced through The Dark Below expansion and shook up the game by being the first Sniper Rifle to go into the primary slot. But as other classic exotics return to Destiny 2, we have to wonder if No Land Beyond will ever make a comeback. Well, let’s talk about it.

Will the No Land Beyond make a comeback?

It’s hard to see the No Land Beyond coming back to Destiny 2 without some serious changes to its design. After all, it was introduced during Destiny’s formative years. Weapon slots have entirely changed since then, and Kinetic Sniper Rifles are by no means a rarity anymore. We’ve also got plenty of slow-firing powerhouse weapons that functionally perform the same job. So, again, it’s hard to see Bungie having much reason to bring the weapon back without radically changing its purpose.

But this is a gun I’ve wanted to see return for years. It has a special place in my heart. It was the very first Exotic weapon I ever unlocked during the Prison of Elders activity back in the House of Wolves expansion. So No Land Beyond is one of my favorites for nostalgic reasons and I’d love to have it back in Destiny 2. However, large portions of the community want this gun back too so it’s not just me.

The No Land Beyond is still a fascinating weapon, after all these years. It was, aesthetically, one of Destiny’s most interesting designs back in the day. The design was based on the PTRS-41, a real-world rifle used in the 1940s. As such it sports a vintage look that goes against the grain of Destiny’s other weaponry. This helped it stand out visually but also gave the gun a ton of unique mechanics.

This gun could only fire one shot at a time before a lengthy animation would play to chamber the next bullet. It had no scope, so you’d need to use the weapon’s iron sights to aim at targets. But this sight would shift a lot when moving, making it tricky to track enemies. If you missed the critical shot, you likely wouldn’t get another chance. Of course, the Mulligan perk had a chance to give you that shot back so it wasn’t all bad.

What needs to change for Destiny 2

Ultimately the No Land Beyond was all about skill and patience in Destiny. If you wanted to make it work, you’d need tons of practice and knowledge about the game’s maps and builds. That learning curve is a key component to the weapon for me, and that high-risk-reward gameplay is crucial.

The simple answer to bringing the No Land Beyond back in Destiny 2 is to slap it into the Power weapon slot. It can still be an extremely powerful weapon but one limited by the small ammo. Give it an anti-barrier perk, a boost to precision damage, and some other neat perks like Opening Shot and this could be a really cool weapon to use again. And even if it isn’t balanced perfectly, that wouldn’t be the first time a weapon came into Destiny 2 busted.

Related: All Destiny 2 dungeon Exotics weapons ranked

Of course, I think Bungie will need to update the lore on why a weapon that’s centuries old can put down alien tanks and Hive war gods. Suspension of disbelief is one thing but there’s only so far that can take you. Maybe we can say that Eris Morn has blessed each bullet with super duper Hive god energy that makes it stand up to the rest of Destiny 2’s weaponry.

While I wait for No Land Beyond to hopefully make its return I’ll have to stick with the Dead Man’s Tale for an anachronistic weapon in my sci-fi looter shooter. I don’t expect the No Land Beyond to make an appearance anytime soon, what with Destiny 2’s 2024 plans already laid out. But hey, a guy can dream.