I have been involved in the game since 2021. I have purchased all expansions, joined various clans from time to time to experience raids, and even managed to convince some of my friends to start playing as well. Having now gained a more comprehensive perspective, I felt compelled to share my own comments (and I emphasise “my own” because I am certain I am not the first to reach the point of quitting the game). My feedback is as follows:
1) Poor Guidance for Beginners
As a new player in 2021 (and I still consider myself a new player, as will become evident), I never felt that the game provided adequate guidance regarding the sequence of its storylines or the available weapons. Even the cinematics shown to me upon logging in were often out of order, which led to confusion about the game’s narrative. As a result, I found myself having to seek external sources to piece together the storyline more effectively than the game itself does.
Regarding side quests, while it is enjoyable to have a variety of quests to complete, the lack of direction combined with chaotic, overly descriptive quest instructions—often containing information that a beginner could not possibly know—led me to abandon many of them, ultimately hindering my progress.
2) Unfriendly PvP Environment for Beginners
Despite repeated attempts, I played Trials of Osiris and Competitive modes and consistently felt as though I was the only beginner in my teams. I am unsure whether there is a matchmaking system that pairs players with those of similar experience, but if such a system exists, I certainly did not experience its benefits.
3) Purchasing Expansions Without Campaign Access
From what I have read, a considerable number of players have complained about this issue, and I fully understand why. I purchased certain expansions that once included quests, only to find that they had been removed. This left me feeling as though I had simply donated money to the company in exchange for a few exotic weapons, rather than receiving the full content that was originally available.
4) Raids and Playing with Random Teams
Due to the structure of raids, I had some of the worst experiences when playing with random players, with whom communication was virtually impossible—whether due to language barriers, technical issues, or toxic behaviours. The way raids are designed essentially forces players to form teams with friends or reliable teammates in order to succeed; otherwise, they will never have the opportunity to obtain raid rewards.
In my case, I was unable to collaborate effectively with a team, and my friends eventually quit the game due to the aforementioned reasons, as well as their inability to participate meaningfully in raids. As beginner players, they found it extremely difficult to grasp what was required of them.
Final Thoughts
As a game, both in terms of story and gameplay mechanics, it is highly enjoyable—one of the most engaging games we have played. However, the aforementioned issues are significant enough to discourage us from continuing. I sincerely hope that solutions will be found in the future. However, as things stand, [b]Bungie does not currently have our trust[/b] when it comes to investing further money into future expansions or new releases.
-
Disagree on the whole raid bit, but the rest I do. Raids are endgame. They shouldn’t be made for a new player to the game to be able to easily figure out. They should be made to challenge the most seasoned players. Communication and teamwork is one of the core elements to raids. As for toxic people in LFGs - that’s not something Bungie can do much about. It’s not difficult to find people to play with or find people looking to Sherpa players through content. These forums, Reddit, and most of the LFG sites are filled with people looking for teammates or to teach beginners. Some people, all they do is Sherpa beginners through raids. Most LFG forums have dedicated Sherpa threads because it’s so popular. Much like life itself, you have to put an effort into finding people to be friends with if that’s what you want.
-
My only issues with this is #2: Trials is [b]not[/b] for beginners and shouldn't be. It is an endgame pvp mode. Competitive is more accessible, but by nature, is also not for beginners. I mean you wouldn't immedaitely hop into ranked in any other game, so I wouldn't advise it in this one either. The game SHOULD do a better job communicating that, so that people can adequately set their expectations, but going into a 7 year old game with an established player base and jumping into comp/ranked is a bad idea in any game. I guess technically I take issue with 4 too because it's easily the best pve content in the game, but yeah if you're just fishing out a bunch of randoms, you're more likely to have a bad time than if you're in a clan, or have friends that raid.
-
1. Agreed. 2. I'm rubbish at it so I expect to be punished like I paid to be. 3. Are you referring to seasons being gone on this one? 4. Some people think adding matchmaking to raids would make it easier; your post appears to suggest otherwise.