According to a post from the developer, instead of a raid the new DLC will feature “a new cooperative end game activity focused on variety, replayability, and skill — a new battle Arena called the Prison of Elders.” The gameplay mode will support three players working together. Details are otherwise scarce on what the new activity will look like, but the developers will demonstrate its gameplay live on a May 6 stream. It will likely entail some sort of wave-based challenge, so three guardians can hold out as long as possible in an arena against increasingly challenging groups of enemies. Various other drips and dregs about the expansion will roll out over the next month leading up to its release.
Bungie kicked off the hype train the other day with the above trailer, narrated by the enigmatic Queen of the Reef, a debris field at the edge of human space to which Guardians have been invited by the Queen to exact revenge against the Fallen for betraying her trust. As with the previous DLC, House of Wolves will introduce new missions, strikes, and gear, in addition to Prison of the Elders and a 3-v-3 team deathmatch event called Trials of Osiris. One crucial detail that Bungie has not yet addressed is whether the third raid, while not in House of Wolves, will be included as part of the Expansion Pass, or will stand alone as an additional purchase.