A former employee of Bungie is currently causing quite a stir in the Destiny 2 community. In one of his recent tweets, he openly expressed his opinion about some of the most well-known content creators of the loot shooter, including Paul Tassi, Saltagreppo, and Aztecross. He claims that their opinion about the game is unimportant to Bungie.
How did this statement come about? The statement regarding Bungie’s disregard for certain Destiny 2 content creators comes directly from Griffin Bennett, the former social media lead of Bungie. He was one of the employees who had to be let go at the end of October due to a poor revenue forecast at the developer.
Bennett reacted to a humorous remark from Paul Tassi, an editor at Forbes and long-time Destiny content creator, about Bungie possibly having a creator “DEFCON system”.
- In this context, Paul Tassi rates himself at DEFCON 5 because he “complains about everything”.
- Saltagreppo is rated as DEFCON 4 and Aztecross as DEFCON 3.
- The former Destiny streamer Gothalion, who is active again after a break, is placed at DEFCON 2.
- Datto, one of the most well-known content creators, is given only a DEFCON 1 status, which represents a comparatively lower frequency of complaints on Tassi’s list.
The ex-employee Griffin Bennett, however, clears up this list and replies to Tassi: “You, Saltagreppo, and Aztecross aren’t even registered on the scale.”
“Bungie only worries when streamers are upset”
Bennett contradicts the community assumption: For a long time, the community has believed that the opinions of streamers and content creators in Destiny 2 are more important than those of the players themselves.
However, if the former employee’s assertion is true, it could provide insights into Bungie’s internal processes and show how the developer really views the Destiny 2 content creators.
Players have certainly noticed Bennett’s tweet. They promptly commented in a Reddit thread titled “We just witnessed a murder.”
- Rbustf believes the former employee and writes: “[Griffin Bennett], Liana [Ruppert], and Dylan [Gaffner] [all former employees from social media and community] have all been very honest about such matters since the layoffs.”
- The_Bygone_King commented: “[Bennett] is absolutely right. Tassi hardly says anything worth mentioning, Saltagreppo’s requests have not influenced the game so far, and Aztecross is an opportunist whose opinion can surely be ignored by now. The only person who has actually remained true to their stable position is Datto.”
- AlexCora countered: “Telling some of the most prominent voices in the Destiny community that their opinions are literally meaningless does not exactly make me feel that Bungie is in touch in any way.”
This is how Bennett further clarified his statement: The former employee followed up his first tweet with a clarification after it quickly gained attention.
There he states that content creators naturally still get heard and their opinions are still valued. However, it is not a “DEFCON” classification because their voices are present everywhere.
To clarify: I mean that you complain so often that it is not registered on any DEFCON scale. Not that your opinion isn’t important.
wrote the former employee in another post via Twitter/X
Bitter changes often occurred after streamer complaints
Nerfs that players did not want: The balance between considering the wishes of players and adhering to the creative vision of the game is a tightrope walk that is not always easy to handle. While content creators usually have a more professional perspective on a game because they spend a lot of time on it, one cannot say whether they were ultimately the reason for such changes.
What can be said is that they do not always go down well with most players. This was particularly evident in Destiny 2 in the case of the streamer and Worlds-First winner Saltagreppo. The opinion about him in the community is, to say the least, mixed.
- Saltagreppo openly expressed his concerns about the support exotic
Divinity
, as the weapon makes the necessary skills obsolete that one needs for various DPS phases. Bungie reacted. - The Well of Radiance, in the streamer’s opinion, also overly restricts build crafting and player creativity in endgame. Shortly after, Bungie announced this nerf as well.
Especially because he aims for good options that many players have appreciated for years, he receives a lot of criticism for it. Even if the suggestions make sense. Player Dizzy-Expression8868 says about Saltagreppo:
When looking at some of his comments or ideas objectively, they might sound reasonable and positive for the long-term health of the game, but the way he approaches them radiates an atmosphere of arrogance and egocentrism. […] If one would say “X makes the game or encounters too easy,” I think – who is “too easy” for? The skills of players are a spectrum or at least a scale, and highly skilled players like Saltagreppo, Esoterickk, etc. are at the top of a small percentage of players. The rest of us, the average mortals, range from moderately skilled to “can hold our own” and down to “which end do the bullets actually come out of?” With particularly sensitive topics, it matters how they are addressed, and Saltagreppo has the subtlety of an angry, bright red rhinoceros.
expresses himself Dizzy-Expression8868 about Saltagreppo’s nerf suggestions
The Guardian Johnwavescar says regarding the whole discussion: “I will know we are in actual endgame when Esoterickk breaks his silence.” and receives over 1000 upvotes for this comment.
Who is this Esoterickk anyway?
Although hardly anyone knows his face, the YouTuber Esoterickk has long been known in the Destiny 2 community. He has made a name for himself for mastering even the hardest activities solo with ease. He has long been considered one of the best PvE players and repeatedly leaves us average guardians in awe. His leap to death at the end of every activity he completes in Destiny 2 symbolizes that the only thing that can kill him is himself. His opinion is greatly valued because he behaves relatively neutrally and has been playing the game diligently to this day.
What is your opinion on Griffin Bennett’s statement that the most well-known content creators in Destiny 2 are not being considered? Do you think he is right? Feel free to share your opinion in the comments.
Or are you not interested in these streamer-player conflicts in Destiny 2 and would rather know what the best content in Bungie’s loot shooter currently is? Then have a look here: “Ruin of the Warmind” is celebrated as the most beautiful dungeon of all time, offering frosty adventures on a mountain fortress
