The loot will be worse with new weapon types

After reaching Act 3, I’ve noticed that the biggest issue I’m having in this new playthrough is with gear. I wasn’t quite sure why at first, but I think it’s because now that there are one more weapon type (with one more shield type), the chances of getting gear that fits your “class” are lower. This problem will only get worse once more classes are added to the game.

In PoE1, skills weren’t mostly tied to gear, so you could swap weapon types without much trouble, but in PoE2 that’s no longer the case.

On top of that, I’m noticing I’m getting fewer rare items, so I have fewer Regals to upgrade my gear. This situation improves a bit in Act 3, but Act 2 has been especially tough when it comes to finding upgrades.

That's a good point you bring up and I can't think of any fixes off the top of my head.

That is indeed a long-term problem that should be addressed sooner rather than later