Overall, this seems fine to me. :)

You're the biggest Destiny cheerleader I know, so this doesn't surprise me.

It strikes me right now that so much of Destiny discussion is about the pursuit and acquisition of stuff. Like, I don't see much discussion of the actual stuff or the journey to the stuff. Or at least enough to make the signal to noise ratio worthwhile.

Just stuff. Endless stuff.

Huh.

The topics on my front page right now are:

- A topic about the new Supremacy Crucible mode
- A topic about Silver Dust / Ornaments and stuff
- A topic about Wrath of the Machine experiences and strategies
- A topic about a vendor selling a good roll on some stuff
- A topic about Destiny's backstory
- A topic about a Portland Raid group
- A topic about Destiny / Xbox Live being down
- A topic about the PSVR
- A topic about streaming the Raid
- A topic about the Raid
- A topic about getting more stuff from the Raid
- A topic about taking screenshots of your character
- A topic about Festival of the Lost 2016
- A topic about Supremacy
- A topic about our real life Golden Age (rocketry, etc)
- A topic reviewing Rise of Iron
- A topic about Iron Banner being live
- A topic about the Raid
- A topic about the projectile deflecting artifact
- A topic about Raid communication and strategy
- A topic about stuff and the difficulty leveling up
- A topic about organizing a PS4 Raid
- A topic about organizing a Customs Night
- A topic about the Chaperone
- A topic about how best to get stuff to be ready for the Raid

Sure, the topics about stuff (loot) are a good bit longer, but they are outnumbered by a good mix of other topics, mostly concerning impression of and strategies relating to the new Raid.

Overall, this seems fine to me. :)

Just stuff. Endless stuff.

Huh.

;)

EDIT: Clarification, Stabbim is not my partner.

The economy is not isolated there either. And Bricklink is overpriced for everything good anyway. Might as well just order a shipper and trade off he dupes.

I suppose not everyone experiences blind box/bag items the same, either.

And I have no doubt that people who are content to spend more money on chance are a more reliable revenue source. With the current economy structure for Exotic Ornaments, however, there is an option to buy them from Xur. Which I think is the more important part of this economy to discuss and has been covered in a variety of places. I do think he should have more than 2 available, and the 25 Dust cost is absurd. But I digress. I don't have any issue with a want for the ability to have choices as a consumer.

With Destiny, you might as well just go out into the street and set your money on fire. It'd probably be more fun.

Maybe you could impregnate the bills with whatever is in those Black Snakes?

The ability to have games roll them randomly allows people who specifically enjoy that excitement at their option to continually have that moment of surprise. I fully understand there are people who don't feel that way, but I consider that a more than valid consideration.

This is all valid if you're talking about decoding an engram or something. I'm baffled that anyone would expect me to pay actual money for it, though.

Actually, scratch that. As I was typing that paragraph this whole debate came into perspective for me (I think). From your perspective, you're arguing that people who enjoy what is essentially gambling should be allowed to enjoy it. Here's what might surprise you: I don't disagree. I don't think anyone on my side of the argument actually does. In theory I'm fine with those folks having an outlet, and it's not for me to dictate how they spend their money (even though I do think it's dumb).

I think what I, and others, are really getting at is that some of us would be more willing to spend money on cosmetic items if we KNEW what we were getting. There was another post where someone framed this all as a divide between having disposable income or not, but actually I don't think it's as simple as that, because there's more than just a black-and-white distinction between people who do have disposable income or do not. Some people have MORE disposable income than others. For instance, I could get away with spending 5 bucks on something once. That is a number I know my budget can deal with. And it's not totally unfeasible that I might spend 5 bucks once for something I really liked. But I wouldn't even consider STARTING the process of buying $1 RNG chances, because I don't know how much I'd have to spend before I get something I actually want to keep. It's possible that I might end up spending 30 or 40 bucks before a drop I like came along, and there's just not room in my budget for me to throw that much money at every frivolous thing I come across. But some people CAN throw that money away, and the current system is for them.

(Please note that I'm just making up numbers here; I haven't bought silver and I don't know the pricing. Just substitute the real numbers for whatever I post.)

So the thing is, Bungie is currently getting no dollars out of me for ornaments. It's not that I hate Bungie, or even that I'm withholding money as a protest. It's simply not practical for me to spend anything in that manner. They will continue to get no dollars for the foreseeable future because I'm not gambling for ornaments. They could potentially get 5 (or whatever the price point would be for a set purchase). Now, whether that is BETTER for them is something their number crunchers would have to answer, although I'm not sure they can really know without trying it both ways and comparing. All I can say is what would get more out of me individually, and the current system is not it.

I'm an avid toy collector and have noticed the increasing popularity of blind boxes and bags from various manufacturers. That joyous feeling of opening a gift you describe is definitely different for me when buying one of these packages.

There are always multiple posts all over the internet when LEGO releases a new mini-fig series about trying to feel around the bag to figure out which figure is in there so you don't end up spending boatloads of cash to get them all. It's stupid that those posts are necessary and that you can't just walk into a store and buy the shit you want.

This is exactly the same thing, only worse. At least with LEGO, you could sell the damn thing on BrickLink if you get one you already have or don't want. With Destiny, you might as well just go out into the street and set your money on fire. It'd probably be more fun.