Naturally, this article contains some slight spoilers with regards to Destiny 2's main campaign.

Destiny 2 has a much, much better campaign than its predecessor. It's certainly not perfect, but between its reasonably competent storytelling and likeable cast of secondary characters, it gives players a good reason to actually see it through. 

It's not just the narrative stuff that elevates it above what came before, though. Peppered throughout the sequel's campaign are a bunch of memorable missions, many of which are fantastic examples of top notch first-person shooter level design. Indeed, Bungie flexes its muscles with some of these scenarios, both visually and in terms of enemy encounters. Now, we're not saying that these missions are absolutely mind-blowing, but we do think that they're incredibly well put together.

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One mission in particular, entitled Utopia, is the standout. On paper it sounds pretty standard: you're tasked with venturing deep into enemy territory, grabbing an important item, and then making it out alive. Get in, get out, and shoot some aliens along the way.

Utopia doesn't necessarily take this simple premise to new heights, but it does nail the execution. The pacing is spot on: combat sections are relatively short, but they're just punchy enough to keep the tension high, while stints of traversal through atmospheric environments really help set the tone.

The mission also sees you go up against the Hive -- a ritualistic, somewhat insectoid alien menace. As the first Destiny showed us, the Hive are at their best when Bungie plays up their creepy nature, and Utopia does its best to emphasise the faction's horror aspects.

Erratic thralls emerge from goop and scurry out of holes in the walls. Wizards screech as they propel themselves into the open. There's a bit where a hulking cyclops clambers into a dimly lit arena and starts chasing you down -- it's great stuff. While none of this is especially scary -- we're not sure that's the intention to begin with -- all of these encounters feed into the overall tone of the mission as you find yourself delving deeper and deeper into the bowels of Titan.

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As you'd expect of a mission that's structured like a heist, there's action waiting at the end of it. But before you get thrown into the thick of it, there's a stellar section where you navigate a series of tunnels. The whole segment is very reminiscent of Alien as you move through one claustrophobic space after another, and everything's dead silent. Bungie even places a bright light behind a large, moving fan in a ventilation shaft at one point, its ominous shadow spinning on the opposite wall. Classic.

But yes, you wind your way through these corridors, make a couple of shaky jumps, and bang, you fall directly in front of the CPU core that you're looking for. As soon as you grab it, the tone of the mission shifts almost perfectly. Everything lights up with a red glare, the music kicks back in, and you're soon sprinting away in third person with the spherical hardware tucked under your arm.

It's hardly a straight shot to the finish line, however. In order to get through the hordes of Hive that have now flooded the escape tunnel, you climb aboard a weaponless construction vehicle and smash your way to freedom. You mow down dozens of Hive and power through loads of rocky structures as you orchestrate your haphazard getaway. It's a great ending to a brilliant mission.

Again, Utopia doesn't redefine the genre's level design or single-handedly propel Destiny 2 beyond its peers, but it's a mission takes many of Destiny's core strengths and combines them pretty much flawlessly. In that sense, it's 15 minutes of a blockbuster that are well worth highlighting.

Are you a fan of Destiny 2's Utopia mission? For god's sake, don't wake the Hive in the comments section below.