This is not what I'm trying to argue. If the following may be a better example, you yourself have championed such games like Genshin Impact for it's success with Gaas. That is another example of the type of online system I'm referencing to entice larger audiences. A mixture of both online and SP. I doubt you'll claim that Genshin isn't a moneymaker, as it managed to successfully capture two audiences very well.
I'm saying Bungie could manage this if they wanted to rather than putting all of their eggs in one distinct basket and hoping for the best every single time.
I get what you're saying, and forgive me for jumping into a conversation between you two, but I do think your concern is misplaced. I mean, if you personally desire Bungie to have an offline option for its games so you can play them completely at your leisure, I get that.
But, I don't think there is an inherent danger here to Bungie or its projects. Most live service games don't really offer what you're suggesting. Even among the most successful of them. Creating a whole separate experience for offline players would obviously require a ton of additional work.
Even if you just made the game as it is playable offline, well, now you have to figure out how to scale the mechanics which were intended for a certain group size. You could try to create NPC's that accompany you, but now you have to figure out how to make them behave in the right ways. You're still creating an issue where they have to figure out balance.
Then what do you do about weapon and armor drops? How do you balance them against a watered down experience to reflect the effort in getting them? Do you even allow them to transfer them to the live game? These are all questions and issues that require separate work every single time they add something.
And this may not even be remotely applicable to Marathon. Meaning we're back to spending time and resources just to create a campaign that they'll then have to continue to support throughout the game like they have to do with Destiny. All that extra effort so people can play solo instead of the way the devs intended.
At the end of the day, Bungie is a live service company. It's the hill they've chosen. That may change in the future. People like you might entice them to. That's valid. But, if other companies have found great success in this realm, and they have too, I don't think there is a need for concern. With the exception of the Lightfall expansion, Destiny looks like it will have been in the best state it's ever been for at least 3 years by the time the next expansion or sequel drops.
