The Real Reason This Dialogue Was Included In Destiny 2: Beyond Light

Destiny 2: Beyond Light recently landed and brought with it additions such as new subclasses, a new world, and a new element. The update also brought loot oversights, most notably a lack of weapons that utilize the new Stasis element. The only Stasis weapon available is the grenade launcher Salvation's Grip, which is only available through the mission "Stealing Stasis." As gamers went through the quest to acquire the only weapon that fires ice bombs, they realized "Stealing Stasis" also features the funniest dialogue to ever grace Destiny. The story behind the mission's small talk is nothing more than a happy accident — that was brought on by not-so-happy circumstances.

If you haven't run "Stealing Stasis" yet, here's what happens: Your Ghost relays instructions given by Drifter, but instead of delivering them in his typical demeanor, the Ghost goes full ham and tries to imitate Drifter's signature drawl. Why doesn't Drifter speak himself? According to your Ghost, he has to maintain radio silence. But why does the Ghost adopt the drawl? Because Drifter thought the little eyebot couldn't "sell it," and the Ghost wanted to prove him wrong.

Because of this extra bit of spice, audiences have come together to claim that the quest dialogue is "the funniest thing that has ever been in Destiny," as well as to compliment the script chef behind it. However, according to gunmaster95 — a verified Bungie designer on the Destiny 2 subreddit — the dialogue was the result of turning lemons into the world's funniest lemonade. Apparently, Drifter's voice actor, Todd Haberkorn, was indeed supposed to talk players through the mission, but scheduling was problematic. The cause? Appointment issues due to COVID.

Because Haberkorn couldn't be booked, one of Destiny 2's writers had the brilliant idea of recasting Drifter with your Ghost — and having the Ghost's actor, Nolan North, imitate Drifter. It seemed like a good idea at the time, since North's schedule was more flexible, and he is a talented actor, to boot. Just one problem: He was too good. According to gunmaster95, North's first take "perfectly imitated Drifter," so he was asked to try it again, but this time, make it intentionally worse. Gunsmith95's thoughts on the finished product echo those of gamers.

This isn't the first time a COVID-caused scheduling conflict resulted in a slight recast that turned out well. On November 12, the team behind the Halo TV show had to recast Cortana and acquired her original actor, Jen Taylor.

With any luck, this is the last time North has to stand in for Haberkorn. Or maybe it will be the first time. Depends on who you ask.