'Destiny 2' fans are furious because the game makes them pay for something that used to be free

Critics and fans alike seem to love the game thus far, but the game's most hardcore fans have one major gripe that's completely taken over the "Destiny" subreddit. It has to do with something called "shaders."

The concept of "shaders" in the original "Destiny" was simple: You either earned or bought these items ("shaders") that would specifically colorize your character. Maybe you wanted a yellow hue instead of a blue one (or whatever else). You used this item ("shaders") to do that.

In "Destiny 2," this concept still exists but the way it works has changed. Rather than using a shader to change your character's color, you use them on individual items. So instead of using a shader to change your look from yellow to blue, you can change only one particular item — a gun, or a helmet, or chest armor, or whatever else. And you can only use that shader one time.

That's an especially big change in a game like "Destiny 2" where you're constantly getting new stuff. Why use a shader to change the color of your gun when you're just going to swap out that gun for something better?

Worse: The game's creator, Bungie Studios, is selling shaders for real money — in addition to the $60 cost of the game — through the in-game storefront, the "Eververse." And that move has led fans to believe that the entire system was changed from the first game as a means of increasing sales of shaders in the in-game store.

The game's biggest fans have taken to the "Destiny" subreddit to discuss the change, and that discussion has quickly overtaken all other discussion about "Destiny 2."

The top-voted thread on the subject — titled, "Do not spend a SINGLE CENT on micro transactions until shaders become unlimited use" — makes it clear what the problem is: "Shaders being one time use is a deliberate decision to make an aspect of the game worse for the sake of profit."

All of that said, an issue like this affects only the game's most serious players — the kind of person who's spending hundreds or thousands of hours playing "Destiny." The average person buying "Destiny 2," playing through the game's campaign once or twice and dipping a toe into competitive multiplayer, is unlikely to have a real issue here. If you want to change the color of your gun, or shoes, or whatever, you can do that. If you can't, it's no big deal.

For the game's most dedicated audience, though, it's a real problem that directly conflicts with the sense of ownership and in-game representation that's at the heart of the game.

The game's director, Luke Smith, took to Twitter to respond to fan complaints:

When you reach level 20, Sh... @ Luke Smith

With D2, we want statements... @ Luke Smith

The game's publisher, Activision, didn't respond to request for comment.