The new program at Destiny, a “Refer a Friend” campaign, is receiving a lot of criticism. It is considered unfair and does not adequately honor the veterans.
Destiny has experienced several controversies this year. The latest initiative is once again not well received by the community.
Nearly unanimously, the step is criticized: Those who introduce a friend to Destiny and embark on some “easy” adventures with them receive rewards. But this only applies to “newly referred players” – those who have done it before get nothing.
Sherpas feel insulted
Especially the announcement beforehand that “Sherpas” would be rewarded for helping others raised different expectations.
These two sentences from the Weekly Update on November 12th are causing anger, stating that they want to reward Sherpas among the Guardians; those who help the “Kinderguardians” to the mountaintop will receive new rewards:
We’re planning something new to recognize and reward the Sherpas among you. […] If you intend to show them the way to the mountaintop, we’ll have new rewards aimed at recognizing your service to the Kinderguardian.
Those who see themselves as “Sherpas”, meaning helping “newcomers” through the raid, now feel insulted by this purely commercial program.
They have helped others selflessly in the spirit of the community, just for the sake of helping, according to a current top post on reddit. The Destiny community coined the term “Sherpa” in the first year, ensuring it had a good connotation. Now it is being misused for something commercial, for a “money grab,” a trick to get more cash.
The least they could have done was to give “real Sherpas” a small token of appreciation. Rewarding veterans who guide other players through a raid for the first time. Perhaps an emblem, a sign of appreciation.
Destiny players seem to care more about principles
The three currently “most important” posts in the subreddit, the heart of the community, revolve around this issue. It’s always difficult to say what the “silent majority” thinks, but the opinion of those who express themselves is quite clear.
Many say: Hello, Bungie? I infected all my friends with the Destiny virus last year? And now I get nothing for it? Should I have waited a year? That is unfair. I can’t access the rewards now because all my friends are already playing. So I’m being punished for being one of the most loyal fans. Introducing such a program after 14 months is simply unfair.
Mein MMO says: It seems that most people here care less “about the rewards themselves”, even if some would like to have one of the swords, but more about the principle: The loyal fans feel once again “undervalued”, as Bungie’s love seems to be directed primarily towards “new customers”.
The same conflict caused a lot of friction in the unfortunate “money for monitor” story regarding the emotes. Even then, players who played from the start felt insufficiently appreciated. It seems the mistake has been made once again.
This high five backfired.
