Hey there,
Just to preface this, I’ll start by stating that our requirements are under constant review, and should the need to increase/change them arise, we will of course consider this. As of right now, however, we will not be increasing the requirements.
I think it’s important to think about the numbers here. Over the last week, there have been no less than 2.4 million active players logging into The Hive. In contrast to this, as it currently stands, there are less than 100 partners.
Given that you are an active member of the community, you are a lot more likely to come across a partnered player than the vast majority of other players on our server. This happens as a result of having other community members on your friend list (some of whom likely have partners on their friend lists), as our server automatically puts you into hubs with your friends.
As a result of this, coming across a partner is naturally going to be less ‘special’ for you, as you are likely to see them more often. It is of course going to become slightly more common to come across partnered players as more are accepted, but this certainly isn’t a bad thing, and doesn’t make the rank any less special!
At the end of the day, there can never be too many partners, if a YouTube creator is getting 3,000+ views on their videos that feature The Hive, that’s positive for both them and us!