I have to say that I feel it’s a bit more nuanced than just “the game getting more difficult”; rather I would suggest that the overall [i]range of difficulty[/i] seems as though it has [b]contracted[/b] over time. I will grant that the base difficulty for newer Patrol zones and the Vanguard playlist has risen with the passage of the years given changes to suggested Light Levels and the gradual introduction of Modifiers that require more consideration to work around than their older counterparts (ie. Oscillation vs Grounded). On the other hand the increase in survivability one can achieve through build crafting has likewise slowly brought down the difficulty at the upper end, which the devs have had to counteract through the addition of new mechanics and higher difficulty options. Nightfalls, Raids and (once they were added) Dungeons were considered the [b]end game[/b] of PvE, but due to power creep they have (at their base difficulties) begun to drop down to the [b]mid game[/b]. As such Master difficulty modes were added along with Champions, which were then eclipsed by the addition of Bane-Empowered combatants and Contest Modes, and now we have limited time events such as [b]Pantheon[/b] and [b]Right of the Nine[/b] to add even tougher optional difficulties to spice up what would have otherwise become an underwhelming end game experience. However I believe this last example, specifically the addition of the Dungeon [b]Explore[/b] mode option in [b]Right of the Nine[/b], demonstrates that the devs are aiming to bring down the [i]lower end[/i] of the difficulty scale via the upcoming [b]Portal[/b] system with the next DLC. Going even beyond the implementation of tool tips and the noticeable reduction in add density seen in [b]Explore[/b] mode, the idea behind [b]Portal[/b] appears to be that players will have a finer degree of control over the difficulty of the content they choose to engage with through a menu of customizable Modifiers which will have a direct impact on both the quality and quantity of loot to be expected. Many of those posting to these forums keep getting hung up on the idea that their current gear will be essentially worthless in comparison to the new Tier 5 loot they plan on getting (a sentiment I don’t believe follows logically, however that is too large a digression to get into here), but something that is getting lost is in this discussion is the [i]other end[/i] of the scale. It has been stated that Tier 3 gear will essentially be the equivalent of todays MWed and upgraded weapons and armor, which can [i]currently[/i] be earned by getting standard drops from even the lowest difficulty Activities and investing enough resources which are themselves generally more time-consuming than difficult to obtain. As such the future Tier 1 gear should be obtainable via the [b]Portal[/b] system by simply turning a few knobs and opting out of negative Modifiers; in essence, a Vanguard Playlist (and other Activities) that can be enjoyed with more reasonable suggested Light Levels and without having to worry about [b]Haste[/b], [b]Subtle Foes[/b], [b]Oscillation[/b] or [b]Counterfeit[/b] should soon be at hand, so long as the player is willing to forego Enhanced Perks and Masterworks. And if they get bored with that level of difficulty or want to get better loot, they can gradually scale things up until they find their comfort zone. (΄◉◞౪◟◉｀)