Echo of Soul is a Terrible Pay-to-Win MMORPG – 2020 Impressions

How are MMOs like this still able to operate when they sell items like what is present in their cash shop (VIP memberships, outfits with +% attack, +% defense) to their players – that are so blatantly pay-to-win? I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.
So Mrs Stix and I just played through Echo of Soul.. and our experience was – and I mean this in the nicest way possible – absolutely terrible. This game – this MMO – published by Gamigo, the people who also publish ArcheAge – is so disgustingly pay-to-win it’s no wonder it’s in the state it’s in.

Echo of Soul used to be an alright MMO.
You know what? Echo of Soul is still an alright MMO. At its core, the game looks pretty good, its combat isn’t bad. There’s nothing visually wrong with the game, rather, how it’s handled is the main issue I have with the game.
Selling items in the cash shop with that drastic of an effect on the core game is typical Gamigo, and before them, Aeria Games, so I don’t know what I was expecting. But predatory cash shops like this – monetization methods – business models are what is wrong with the free-to-play genre.
It’s why barely anyone cares to invest time into free MMOs in this day and age.
Echo of Soul could be a fun MMORPG if only there were a purpose to play it. Instead, we get.. this. And this is not the way to run a successful game. Maybe to milk some money off of its players, sure, but not to run a game long-term.