The datacrons destroyed the game

Its not random- you invest (effort or paid) in Datacrons or you don't (no effort). One gets you an earned advantage the other doesn't.

Its similar to how some players will have superior rosters due to either a paid or time investment and others don't. Its not as if Datacrons are purely accessible to heavy spenders.

Also nonsense to say strategy isn't rewarded, there is strategy in what Datacrons to put on defence and what to save for attack, its just an extra layer to similar stratagies for team deployment.

This further takes away from your "random advantage" claim as in GAC players can't just stick all their best Datacrons down on defence as a skilled opponent who has chosen balanced or perhaps all out attack Datacron use can potentially clear more effeciently and the defence heavy player may struggle to clear at all..

This of course can work vice versa where the defence heavy gambit will win because the balanced or attack minded player is less skilled at attack and the defence minded player is good at off-meta couners.

Either way there is a good mount of strategy involved both prior to a battle and during battles. Any advantage players get from Datacrons is not random as thy have chosen to invest in certain ones and deployed them in such a way to try and get the maximum advantage from them. That's both "effort and strategy" not "random".