Don't play WoW, then. I'm not sure what the issue is. You don't like their pricing model, I get that. You don't have to, and you're allowed to not like it. I also don't like it, because I haven't the time or level of interest for the costs to be worthwhile for me.
The thing is, other people are allowed to like it. It's not a scam, though; you're getting what you're paying for. Just because it's not something you would pay for doesn't mean nobody else would or should. If you don't feel that the cost is worth your perceived value of the service, then don't buy it. But to suggest that the government should restrict them from being able to sustain their product (or even - GASP - make a profit from doing so) is absurd.
But the fact of the matter is that games like that cost money to create and maintain. If people are willing to pay for a base game, expansion, and a subscription fee in order to access it, then the creator should be allowed to charge for those things. It's not exploiting a vulnerable demographic like, for instance, payday loan sharks. We're talking about a purely recreational hobby. Hobbies generally cost money.
'This is infecting everything, unethical models win out, the whole medium is incentivized to frustr--'
Don't play WoW, then. I'm not sure what the issue is. You don't like their pricing model, I get that. You don't have to, and you're allowed to not like it. I also don't like it, because I haven't the time or level of interest for the costs to be worthwhile for me.
The thing is, other people are allowed to like it. It's not a scam, though; you're getting what you're paying for. Just because it's not something you would pay for doesn't mean nobody else would or should. If you don't feel that the cost is worth your perceived value of the service, then don't buy it. But to suggest that the government should restrict them from being able to sustain their product (or even - GASP - make a profit from doing so) is absurd.
But the fact of the matter is that games like that cost money to create and maintain. If people are willing to pay for a base game, expansion, and a subscription fee in order to access it, then the creator should be allowed to charge for those things. It's not exploiting a vulnerable demographic like, for instance, payday loan sharks. We're talking about a purely recreational hobby. Hobbies generally cost money.
'This is infecting everything, unethical models win out, the whole medium is incentivized to frustr--'
'Just don't buy it.'
'...'
'It's okay, I don't LIKE it either!'
This was not a conversation.
We can definitely agree on this much.