Quote Originally Posted by Naunet View Post
This is silly, but there's no use arguing with you. I'll simply state that I do not agree that SE should 1) be selling basic emotes on the cash shop and 2) that they should be so ridiculously priced. When free-to-play MMOs handle their cash shops better than your pay-to-play MMO, you know there is a problem.
I don't think you really know how F2P MMOs handle cash shops. Normally there are standard basic items you can buy upfront. And then there's super rare cosmetics that you can win in a loot bag that costs like $5. Most people spend $50+ to win the item, some lucky people get it in their first $20 others spend $100 only to get it to drop once. And when you spend $50, $100, $200 or more, you get a bonus outfit for the different points or bonus items.

And to top it all off, all of these are tradeable in game. Normally these super rare costumes are close to the most expensive items in the game. And to make the value of money worth it, the greatest gear in the game can be sold as well. And this repeats every week when a brand new costume is released every now and then or an older super rare costume is re-released.

So to put it in terms of FFXIV. Imagine if the poncho was a super rare item. It is released for a weekend special loot box. During this weekend special, if you spend $50 on the cash shop you get a bonus costume, say a basic non HQ and less detailed Thavarian body. $100 you get basic Minfilia haircut (Premium Minfilia haircut gives you bonus stats when equiped and is in a special loot box that will be released some other weekend). $200 and you get one of the super rare items released during early ARR. Everything in the cash shop is tradeable, so you can sell all the bonus items you get to instantly get rich in game. Also The Creator Savage gear is tradeable so someone with enough gil can purchase a full set and have completely geared up a class. Also in PvP, having better gear helps, there isn't any item level sync.

Now repeat that every week with brand new cosmetic items or older rare ones re-released. Sure it's not P2W, since F2P players can just clear Alexander The Creator Savage themselves to get the gear. But don't forget to even be geared enough to clear Alexander Savage you'll need to spend gil on older gear as well.