Dissatisfaction with Solstice event items in Destiny 2 is reaching a boiling point. Amidst widespread criticism from players about having to re-earn previous seasonal armor, Bungie has announced that it has heard user feedback, but that it does not intend to implement any solutions for the next two seasons.
Anyone that has played through Destiny 2's events is familiar with both the harsh grind required to attain some of the event-exclusive armor, and the bitter disappointment of having to re-earn the gear next year as "ornaments," cosmetic items that allow players to change weapon and armor appearances. While Bungie has continued to recycle previous items into collectible ornaments over the years, fan disappointment has only continued to grow.
When Reddit user Olgrateful-IW predicted that Bungie would excitedly announce that the items would be available as ornaments, and pretend to be surprised at the inevitable backlash, a community manager responded by thanking the community for the post and replies, but announcing while the developers had been “digesting” feedback regarding the Solstice armors from the annual event’s first two years, the team would not be addressing it during “this season, or next.” However, the community managers would continue to send feedback to the team in the meantime.
Fans decried this response as typical of Bungie's community managers. Specifically, they accused the developer of evading long-standing criticism that has existed since Year 1 of Solstice of Heroes. The response is consistent with Bungie's current practices, as many have also complained about how the recent Iron Banner PVP event also offered items from previous events. The criticism also comes after Bungie disabled an exotic item due to a glitch that buffed player damage and faced criticism for overpowering some items.
Bungie's response to Destiny 2 players’ pleas is justifiably frustrating. The FPS developer has eliminated the urgency of collecting this year’s Destiny 2 armor and weapons by continuing to re-release the loot as ornaments because they are no longer exclusive or particularly rare. The incentive of a fitting reward for completing the campaign is gone.
However, the Solstice of Heroes is still a couple of months away. While Bungie may continue to offer its previous armors and cosmetics, players can still hope that the developers will also release some more compelling original exotic armor and weapons as part of their bounty to drive both veterans and newcomers back to the game for more.
Destiny 2 is available now for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One.
Source: Olgrateful-IW/Reddit