Alternatively, please 1:1 implement the Deeds and Contracts system from VT1.
Over 220 hours in game without a single red weapon I actually want but multiple duplicates and 5 red charms. Others have more time without a single red drop at all. I haven’t received a single cosmetic item on any character, despite having opened hundreds of commendation chests.
The current loot system does not encourage player retention. It’s a frustrating mess of retro-era skinner box RNG wherein skilled veterans can go forever without getting anything they want while some rando newcomer can get it on the first try. What’s worse, your odds of getting the item you want never, ever change. At least in VT1, getting a red you didn’t want increased your chances of getting the one you did want because it removed the collected item from the drop pool.
These issues are exacerbated by the current green dust situation. Without red items, you can’t effectively roll stats because there aren’t enough hours in a lifetime to farm all the green dust you’d need to get the rolls you’re after on an exotic.
As for cosmetics, why are you not selling these? You should be. They don’t represent skill and aren’t earned (it’s 100% luck) even for the red weapon cosmetics. They don’t affect the game. The drop rate is so low I’d wager <1% of the player base actually has one and, of those, hardly anyone has cosmetics they’d really want. Just let us pay you for cosmetics and you can roll the money over into fixing/developing other aspects of the game, please.
As a VT1 veteran, I have to say that every decision you’ve made with VT2’s system is flabbergasting as it feels like you’re attempting to totally reinvent the wheel. The logical conclusion feels like it’s going to be implementation of the same features/fixes you have in VT1. As such, why weren’t these improved features in the game from the start?