You’re wrong on the first part, right on the second. The problem isn’t having to level every season. It’s HOW this game [i]forces [/i] you to level. 1. Progression is infused with randomness because progression is tied to loot drops rather than time-investment. 2. The Milestone System is a one-two slap to the face because it both limits the number of drops you get each week that can progress you (and thus amplifying the impact of RNG); plus it forces you to play parts of the game you don’t enjoy, because you get punished by slower progression if you don’t submit. 3. Is a system of [i]control[/i] on Bungie’s part. Both to force you to play the amount they want, and the parts of the game they want played. Not by rewarding you with worthwhile loot....but by withholding progression. If progression were simply a matter of time-investment—-like virtually every other RPG ON THE PLANET—-people wouldnt be feeling so burned out and exhausted.

You are not at the mercy of RNG. With proper leveling technique you can be 1050 in less than two weeks. But you have to use the vendors and the new engrams properly. Using those systems to purchase gear when you are not balanced in gear light level raises your light level. Maxing out each character in turn and then returning to your lower characters and buying gear raises your light level. I currently have characters at 1035, 1034 and 1029 (not counting artifact) and still have some work to do before reset. All 3 should be ~1036 by then and by next weekend around 1050, which will be enough to successfully handle the end game content.

1. You are most certainly at the mercy of RNG in this game once you are beyond the soft cap. People just aren’t felling it as much this season because the focusing the umbral engrams [i]reduces[/i] the impact of RNG on progression. By letting us choose whether the engram drops as a weapon or as armor. 2. The fact that there is a “technique” to leveling in this game is proof that the system is BROKEN. In every other successful RPG, progression is a by product of simply playing the game. It a function of simple time investment. The only other game that followed Destiny down this rat hole of gear-based progression was The Division. But Massive mitigates it by being so overly generous with loot that the RNG effect on progression just get washed out. 3. [i]The proof of the pudding is in the eating.[/i]. If this game has a functional loot system and progression system, people wouldn’t always be looking for was to BREAK IT: Hoarding bounties, token slamming vendor, using outside websites to figure out which vendors are giving the biggest power gains; and now AFK farming umbral engrams in an effort to speed up leveling, This system is broken and Bungie refuses to fix it. Because it meets their needs and not ours.

For once I agree with you. They are never fixing it. I fact, they just made it worse a couple of seasons ago by making it 50 lightlevels every season! It's literally just locking you out of content you've played the day before, like GM ore even just masternightfalls. It's forcing the player to play in a certain way that's not enjoyable. A hamsterwheel you've been in a million times before just to be able to play other parts of the game. It also stops a lot of people from playing together because everybody is grinding for their own lightlevel is stead of playing what they like playing together. This goes against their so called "making friends pollicy".

That’s the stink of it all. The power grind serves no function in this game other than as a means to time-gate content...and to inflate play time without having to actually reward it. ... and people are starting to realize it.