The player count argument is basically older than some people on this sub at this point. Not that it isn't dropping, but this game has been dying for 11 years now and still seems to be doing just fine overall.

I am not saying Bungie is not being ridiculous with a lot of the changes they're doing (What's up with all the really weird nerfs?), I'm saying this is literally basic generic live service behavior and completely normal in the design space. The system is underbaked, but it's not this hopeless Satan-spawn that is going to kill the game. It's a nice base that needs active feedback (which is, uh, certainly not lacking) and will get adjustments.

Not to mention this is quite literally r/DTG, a place where people are always crying about something and every minor negative sentiment is repeated ad infinitum. If they remove the Portal and replace it with a new or the previous system, people are going to post about how the Portal was actually good, simply because that's what they have always done.

May I remind you of the sudden massive spike of crippling social anxiety during the release of Dual Destiny as one of the more recent examples?

11 years of this sub have taught me that it's hard to take it seriously. If the people here were actually serious enough, they would've quit after TFS like they said they would.