Any Gunslinger main will tell you, using all 3 Golden Gun shots effectively is rare. When I say effectively, I mean they didn't go into a wall or disappear with the gun. With 12 seconds, you have to think tactically about using it. You need to identify targets, get safe so you can activate it, get back to where the targets were, and if the stars have aligned, the targets are still there and not dead or gone. Most of the time however, your teammates have killed 1 or 2 of them or the enemy killed your team there and have moved on. Meaning, you get to effectively use 1 or 2 shots. As a Gunslinger main, let me say this. [b]I have no problems with how this super usually plays out[/b] Even if I only get 1 kill, I'm fine with it. Its the inherent risk to using Golden Gun. This risk is what keeps it balanced. The Symbiote in Y1 gave an extra shot. This shot was generally a situational shot. Sometimes you'd miss and need the extra shot to compensate for your mistake. Sometimes the Destiny gods favor you and you run right into the entire team while they aren't facing you. But in most cases, this shot goes to waste. The 12 seconds you have to use the 3 you have normally is just enough. Which is fine, like I said before, this keeps the super balanced. Now here in Y2, the Symbiote makes a return. But its far from triumphant. In fact, I would've preferred it stayed behind if its gonna be this way. The Y2 version does give a 4th shot. But it takes time away from the Golden Gun overall. Brings it from 12 seconds to ~9. So I have to ask. Why should it decrease the time if you barely had enough time in the first place? If it's hard enough to get all 3 shots off effectively and rare to use the 4th shot effectively, why would I bother using an item that lowers the time I have? I wouldn't. [u][b]There is no reason to gimp your time on an already time pressed super for a bonus that rarely is useful anyway.[/u][/b] "But Thienen! It's a trade off!" Fine, then tell my why no other super modifying exotic other than the super overhauling Nighthawk, or any exotic for that matter, has a trade off other than it using your exotic slot? Where is the trade off for the Helm of Inmost Light? Helm of St. 14? Sunbreakers gauntlets? Impossible Machines? "Thienen, losing time makes it balanced!" I would agree if the Golden Gun inherently had 15-20 seconds to be used. It would be fair then to drop the time to 12. But ~9 seconds is almost no time to even get off the 3 shots without an absolutely flawless execution, let alone the 4th. "It was nerfed because Bungie doesn't want it to be the only exotic used by Gunslingers." While I would prefer to see actual stats (I know you have them Bungie) on how many Gunslingers use the Symbiote over the other exotics, I don't feel like this is a valid argument. I have plenty of friends who prefer to not use it. Some like to use the Spine to get 2 trip mines. My best friend has a great PvP weapon but it lacks Third Eye so he uses the Knucklehead. Another loves the Hunters jump so she prefers using the Bones. Hell my wife loves the Mida so she uses the Dance Machines. My point is that the Symbiote is not the end all be all Gunslinger exotic. "You just need to use it better! Use it exactly when you find 4 people!" It doesn't work that way. Everyone who's played the Gunslinger longer than a minute knows popping Golden Gun within the line of sight of enemies means you get gunned down in the animation. Using it around the corner of 4 guardians would be fine if they all stayed in the area you found them in. Now show of hands, how often does this happen? ... The 4 guardians either get killed by your team or they killed your team and moved on. I don't have the time to chase you across the map with 12 seconds, let alone 9. "Then you need to activate it in the path of the 4 so you and them cross paths!" Yea that doesn't go well because we don't have damage resistance. Head to head with more than 2 guardians usually ends like this. http://xboxdvr.com/gamer/Thienen/video/13113394 (Obviously if they weren't capturing the point, combustion wouldn't have worked as well. [b][u]My point is you get obliterated before getting your second shot off[/u][/b]. This is one of the rare moments I'm talking about where the Destiny gods smile on you.) Tl;Dr You've made the Symbiote worthless Bungie. With the helmet on, you've effectively made the 3rd and 4th shot even more rare then they already are. Edit 1: People still don't get it. The reason why this exotic is useless is because the 4th rarely got used in the 12 seconds before. Losing 3 seconds makes it even harder just to use the 3 original shots, let alone the 4th. They took a somewhat useful while pretty situational exotic and replaced it with a willing debuff for that once in a few games chance where everything goes right and you effectively use all 4 shots.