Destiny 2 Players Left Frustrated Over Changes to XP and Bright Dust Gains

Destiny 2 players are venting their frustrations over the change in which they can earn seasonal XP and Bright Dust, massively impacting progression during Renegades. This isn’t the first time that the community has clashed with some of the mechanics that Bungie has implemented into Destiny 2 in dealing with the in-game economy, and considering how often this changes, it likely won’t be the last either.

Although the Star Wars-inspired Renegades expansion hasn’t had quite the positive impact to the current Destiny 2 player count that many had likely hoped, the new content has been well received by critics and fans alike. Reception has already been much more positive than it was for The Edge of Fate, which was heavily criticized over a number of things such as the Kepler-only abilities, the introduction of the Portal, as well as various bugs and glitches that impacted the experience. While Renegades has been far better than the launch of its predecessor, fans have noticed one element that is now much worse than before.

Destiny 2 Renegades Leaves Players Frustrated After Nerf to Popular Farming Spot

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Destiny 2 Renegades Seasonal XP and Bright Dust Controversy

Bright Dust in Destiny 2 is a free currency that players can spend in the in-game shop, from cosmetics, shaders, to just about everything else on offer. Over the years, players have had numerous ways to earn it, typically through completing bounties, seasonal challenges, and more recently, the Pathfinder system. As a live-service title, Destiny 2 is constantly changing and so too has the ability to earn Bright Dust, and with Renegades, Bungie has now made an even bigger change to earning the resource.

After removing the Pathfinder system with the launch of Destiny 2 The Edge of Fate, players had fewer ways to earn Bright DUst. Now with Renegades scrapping Seasonal Challenges entirely and adding a cap to how much Bright Dust could be earned in a week and in a season through the new Orders system, players are feeling the crunch more than ever before. Many took to Reddit to voice their concerns and frustrations, with many calling BUngie stingy, while others warned that this would happen. The thread creator, e-photographer, highlighted all the methods that had been removed over time and asked the community how much more they were willing to take.

However, the Bright Dust change is only part of it, as Renegades has also done away with the Seasonal Challenge system. Previously, players could finish these weekly tasks and earn a large amount of XP that went towards the seasonal battle pass, even helping lapsed players catch up later in a season. With the introduction of the Orders System in Destiny 2 Renegades, players now have a repeatable system to complete tasks, earning payouts of XP and Bright Dust, along with daily and weekly objectives. Unfortunately, the XP earned is substantially smaller than the old Seasonal Challenge system as well as having much fewer objectives to complete per week, making the grind feel much longer than it used to in the past.

Currently, it’s unknown if Bungie will make adjustments to any of these systems based on player feedback. Considering all the issues the studio faced during Edge of Fate, including Destiny 2‘s rapidly declining player base, Bungie was pretty reactionary to things people didn’t like or find rewarding. The studio removed Unstable Cores, a new resource that never really gelled with players, as well as adjusted the grind to make it feel more rewarding. It’s possible that Bungie could make a few tweaks, especially since Destiny 2 hasn’t recovered to this point, so removing some of the friction and frustrating aspects for players could be a way to win some of them back.