Destiny 2's latest expansion, The Edge of Fate, has been marred by controversy as Bungie confirms investigations into cheating during the prestigious Contest mode race for The Desert Perpetual raid. The highly anticipated raid opened to players on July 19, marking the beginning of the intense World First competition that has become a hallmark of Destiny 2 expansions.

The Desert Perpetual introduced innovative gameplay mechanics, featuring a non-linear structure where guardians could tackle three separate boss encounters in any order. While this design was praised for its creativity, the raid race has been overshadowed by allegations of widespread cheating, with Bungie's official Twitter account acknowledging the issue on July 25.

Community outrage has reached new heights as players discovered their leaderboard positions dramatically shifted following Bungie's investigation. One notable case saw a team jump from 510th to 172nd place, suggesting hundreds of clears may have involved cheating. The situation has sparked intense debate about the effectiveness of Battleye, Destiny 2's anti-cheat system, with some estimates suggesting up to 400 of the 600 Contest mode clears were illegitimate.

This controversy comes at a challenging time for Destiny 2, following The Edge of Fate's underwhelming launch numbers. The combination of these issues has left many in the community questioning the game's competitive future, particularly regarding high-stakes endgame activities like raid races.