The sad proof that gaming is in its most dead and
soul-less state so far.
Several games nowadays have the option to pay real money to enhance the experience of the
player, often frustrating him unless he pays up.
Good ways to milk players of the money they thought they wouldn'
t spend in the
game include: energy bars that reduce the
time he can devote to his game, huge timers that need to be reduced for the
player to be able to continue his journey, better gear to deal with players that
don't want to pay, and, the most common one, the existence of a currency in the game that can't be earned without your credit card.
Pay-to-win is sadly increasing everywhere, from small games on Kongregate to medium-sized browser games such as Epic Duel, to the larger games where you need to pay to unlock certain features, such as Injustice and Mortal Kombat.
Zynga is the ultimate pay-to-
win Empire. I am yet to find a
game of theirs where they
don't try to reach for my pocket.