The get you coming, they get you going!

Okay.. I must be old.

Because I recall a time when, you paid for something.. you owned it. And there was no major pressure for a warranty, no fear that it would crap out after a year's use, and that more or less (depending on what you bought)..once you finished paying for it, it was done, no more paying for it. ..except for houses or cars, which require upkeep. But how much do you keep paying for a CD, or a pair of pants, or ..uhh.. a bag of apples??

And so.. Game companies have erred from the path of staying true to their audience, in my opinion. Final Fantasy XI and World of Warcraft were the big guns that blew through the walls and showed the western-world this demon. Plenty of them existed over in EurAsia for a long time now. The difference? You pay your 50$ or more for the game, install it.. and then pay to be able to log-in/on and play the blasted thing. Whereas for most of the ones in EurAsia.. it's a micro-charge (they call it).. where, the game is free.. but for items, or multiple characters, or whatever, it costs you a nominal fee. One-time fee, but these things(items) typically have a limited-time use to them.. let's say, for sake of an arguement, 7-days use before it's removed from your inventory.

The key thing here is.. you pay for the game system or computer. You pay for the internet connection.. you pay for the game. ..and now you must pay to enjoy the thing you've paid for already.
That's like having to throw a wedding every month just to stay married to your spouse.
Or renting your house.. or your car.. and never being able to the thing outright.

To me, this is legal-thievery at it's most money-grubbing-greediest.

The only way I've found to fight back is.. by not playing these games. Not buying them, or using them. ... And I'm not alone.. my friends are now starting to see the idiocy of this. ...and, go figure.. in general, our desire to play games dwindles. Time for a new hobby.. maybe something healthier. I've picked up the bass.. and am slowly getting back into comics and reading. Not sure what my friends are doing. But one thing is certain : It's not wasting our money on these wallet-pigs who whore-out our interest in games.