Destiny's Weapons Referenced in New Netflix Show
By AJ Caulfield 04 January 2017
The new Netflix sci-fi series Travelers dropped a reference to Bungie’s Destiny in its eighth episode, mentioning the names of the game’s exotic weapons.
Travelers, a Netflix and Showcase co-produced science fiction series, snuck in a Destiny Easter egg in its first season. After premiering on the Canadian channel Showcase on October 17, Travelers found its home on Netflix on December 23 and received generally positive reviews — but the series really grabbed viewers’ and Destiny fans’ attention in episode 8, “Donner.”
The Canadian show is a typical dramatic sci-fi: It centers around a special operatives team, who are known as “Travelers,” that bands together to prevent societal collapse and change the fate of our world. There are people who possess telekinetic powers, great advancements in technology and an eerie storyline. In episode 8, Philip Pearson, a member of the “Travelers” special ops team played by Reilly Dolman, discusses a horse race with a fellow character. As Philip makes his bets, Reddit user paracelus caught the clever Destiny reference hidden in the horses’ names.
Philip rattles off five names: Patience and Time, Touch of Malice, The Fourth Horseman, The Last Word, and Down and Doubt. The first three are names of Destiny‘s exotic guns, and the fourth and fifth are the names of Destiny‘s hand cannons. Within the game, Patience and Time is a sniper rifle; Touch of Malice is a scout rifle; and The Fourth Horseman is a shotgun. While The Last Word is an exotic hand cannon, and Down and Doubt is a legendary one.
Viewers of the series and Destiny players alike have questioned who was responsible for tucking this reference in. From show creator Brad Wright to episode 8’s director Will Waring to the entire writers’ room, it is clear that someone on the Travelers team is a fan of the Bungie game.
Perhaps a not-so-secret fan, at that. Since noticing the reference to the game’s exotic weapons in episode 8, audience members have speculated that the show title might be a Destiny reference itself. Those familiar with the game’s lore picked up on the Travelers title, linking it back to Destiny‘s the Traveler, the mysterious giant white orb that plays a role in the game’s plot.
It’s no surprise that fans are excited about this Easter egg. Destiny broke records when it made $500 million in sales on its first day, and its popularity has only grown with time. Recently, the title wrapped up its latest live event, The Dawning, and it has been confirmed that Destiny 2 will be released this year.
With more television watchers looking to Netflix for fantastic original content, the sci-fi series Travelers was smart to include a subtle nod to a well-loved game. Tie this together with the announcement that EA might be working on a Netflix for games, and this Destiny reference in Travelers could be the push needed to make that a reality in the near future.
Travelers is available now on Netflix. Destiny was released on September 9, 2014, and is currently available on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One.
