Bungie and Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI), announced the early launch date for Destiny 2 on PlayStation 4, and Xbox One (PlayStationPlus or Xbox Live Gold subscription, respectively, required for significant features, and beta access) scheduled for September 6. The PC version launch date is scheduled for October 24 and is now available to pre-order via Battle.net, Blizzard Entertainment’s online gaming service. Debuted during the E3 Sony Press Conference was Destiny 2’s latest cinematic story trailer “Our Darkest Hour” featuring the ominous villain, Dominus Ghaul.

The Destiny 2 console beta early access period for PlayStation 4 players who pre-ordered the game will begin July 18 at 10am PDT, while early access for Xbox One players who pre-ordered will begin on July 19 at 10am PDT. Following the pre-order early access period, the Destiny 2 console beta will open up to all PlayStation 4 and Xbox One players on July 21 at 10am PDT and will conclude at 9pm PDT on July 23. The PC beta kick off is planned for late August. Further details on the PC beta to come soon.

At E3, inside the Los Angeles Convention Center, Bungie and Activision will provide a variety of hands-on experiences for attendees with the all-new story campaign as well as competitive, and cooperative multiplayer gameplay, debuting a brand-new subclass, the Arcstrider Hunter whose “super” ability is to summon an Arc-empowered staff to be used for close-quarters melee combat. Attendees are invited to play a vast array of gameplay activities for Destiny 2on PS4 Proat the Activision booth #1001 in the South Hall, and PlayStation’s booth #4322 in the West Hall. Additionally, attendees can experience the PC version in NVIDIA’s booth #5230 in the West Hall.

“Everyone always says that they can’t wait for fans to get their hands on their game. But we really mean it. Destiny 2 looks so awesome, I’m thrilled to announce that we are moving the release date up to September 6,” said Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision. “We are also hard at work with our friends at Bungie optimizing Destiny 2 for the PC, which we will be releasing in all its glory on October 24. And tonight, we are taking a deeper look at Ghaul, our villain in Destiny 2, who the world is going to love to hate. It’s going to be a big week for Destiny fans.”

Bungie CEO, Pete Parsons, said, “For all of us at the studio, this is a humbling year to see the vision of the Destiny universe welcome its sequel, and for us, the most exciting part is to see what stories this amazing community will tell once it is in their hands.” He added, “We had an industry-defining moment at our Destiny 2 gameplay reveal in May, and at E3, the team is expanding hands-on to showcase a new subclass and will continue to highlight the vast variety of hands-on experiences that appeal to both solo and multiplayer gamers.”

Revealed today were the Destiny 2 PlayStation timed exclusives available at launch, which include a competitive multiplayer map, a three-player cooperative Strike, a blue and white colored ship, specialized gear sets, and an exclusive exotic weapon.

Destiny 2 is the sequel to the internationally acclaimed Destiny, a first-person action game that takes the player on an epic journey to defend humanity from annihilation. In the story of Destiny 2, the last safe city on Earth has fallen and lay in ruins, occupied by a powerful new enemy Dominus Ghaul and his elite army, the Red Legion. Every player creates their own character called a ‘Guardian,’ humanity’s chosen protectors. As a Guardian in Destiny 2, players must master new abilities and weapons to reunite the city’s forces, stand together and fight back to reclaim their home. The game will offer a fresh start to all players with no previous knowledge or background needed.