In early D1 Bungie defended itself against the onslaught of similar Salt and Sanctuary (pun intended) we are seeing today with the simple statement "We want players to experience variety and not rely on one playstyle or weapon" Have they forgotten this? It seems that the team that worked on D2 were oblivious to D1's improvements, what was done right, what worked and what players were happy with. I dare go as far as to say this is "souls-like" (used wrong intentionally) because the sequel to the first game ended up being vastly different to the point it was almost not considered part of the series. My issue with Bungie's apparent 180 on their own ideals involving the sandbox resides solely on the HCR/Mida meta in crucible. Plain and simple: if you dont use HCR or a Mida you are going to have a bad time. Yes i know there are counters, out playing tactics and joining the meta but this is just a different version of Suros Regime/Thorn. With the lack of viable exotics and rolling perks on weapons lots of players are stuck with playing with HCR builds or using the same Best In Class weapon. (ninja edit because i forgot pulse nades) is it bad enough every class has one now and the pulse nade spam/power is a little much? This leads to boredom and frustration. The reality in crucible is bleak: HCR or struggle. Flinch coupled with the bloom/RNG of our shots does not mesh well with this futuristic space shooter. I will finish up this stream of thought with a question to the remaining player base: What is your motivation for playing crucible?