More Loot ≠ Less Challenge — A Case for Accessible Rewards in POE2

Even after the latest patch aimed at improving loot quantity and quality, the experience remains uneven. While some players with fully optimized setups — stacked magic find, overlapping tower zones, and premium portals — now enjoy explosive gains, the vast majority still see minimal difference. For regular players who don’t run perfect setups or grind for hours daily, the promise of "better loot" feels more like a technicality than a real shift.

As someone who plays more than average — but not quite at hardcore levels — I’ve reached a point where gear upgrades don't meaningfully boost my power. What I do look for now are alternatives with added Magic Find, not higher DPS. But these items are locked behind a grind that only top-tier players can realistically sustain.
Here’s the issue:

The current loot system doesn’t reward skill or effort alone — it rewards extreme time commitment.
And that leaves out:
• Casual players who want to trade.
• Mid-level players who put in real hours, but not marathon hours.
• Everyone who enjoys progression but doesn’t want to jump through six layers of map setup just to see a divine drop.
I’m not suggesting lowering the difficulty. Keep the challenge. Keep the punishment on death.
But let us feel rewarded for playing, not just punished for not playing 10 hours a day.
If loot was more accessible:
• Casuals could really trade and engage with the economy.
• Hardcore players would still lead, because they’d reroll, min-max, and test limits anyway.
• Currency sellers would lose influence, making the game healthier and fairer.
• The player base would grow — and stay.

More loot doesn’t break the game. It saves it.