Quote Originally Posted by Culfinrandir View Post
Whenever something new comes out elsewhere, or us hinted at somewhere the cry is GIVE ME NOW FOR MONEY! Nobody steps back and thinks "Hmm, maybe we'll get this in the future as part of the game". The result was the Cash Shop & a lack of incentive to come up with better in-game content.

The reason we get pretty crap gear for events nowadays is because SE know they can charge for "better" gear & that there's no point trying to keep people waiting, excited about the new items they've seen, because the result is endless demands that planned future content is introduced NOW! The only way to do that for something originally planned as event gear is to put it in the Cash Shop. For all we know, these items could be future event items or veteran rewards; getting them now means something will have to be rushed in to take their place. Less time means less innovation.
Despite people constantly bemoaning this evil conspiracy narrative, Square has yet to actually do it. The Cash Shop has primarily been a dumping ground for old seasonal events. The only exception is non-canon cosplay outfits and Sleipnir. Mayhaps we should wait to see if they ever actually exploit the Cash Shop before presuming they will? It's been over a year with no evil plans underway.