I think the OP makes it clear that the product isn’t the problem, but rather the price.
Let’s look at a topical case study to illustrate:
The free market would say that, since the demand for toilet paper is so high these past couple of months, companies like Charmin should feel free to up their prices—people are gonna buy whatever little they can find because it’s so scarce and people have been convinced they “need” it. But that’s price gouging, and that’s generally thought to be icky in an immoral way because it’s taking advantage of the vulnerable.
And no one wants the whole world to be walkin’ around with smelly butt cheeks.
In Gems of War’s case, the vulnerable are those who don’t know what they don’t know—namely, new players. They don’t even realize they should be doing their due diligence. They’re just being shown these “great deals” and trusting the company not to lie to them about how “great” the deals are. That’s shady.
Where it becomes, in my opinion, criminal is when we’ve wandered into the territory currently under discussion: actively trying to swindle those who aren’t just ignorant (and who can afford to have a “you fooled me once, shame on you, but never again” mentality), but those who have a problem. Certain business practices enable problems to exist and persist. That’s flat-out evil no matter how much I like certain other aspects of capitalism.
It’s hard to throw away your house on gambling if you’re only allowed to spend a certain threshold of your income on it. Sure, that’s paternalistic, and not “pure” free-market—but there’s a reason certain things, including video games, have certain regulated price caps; it’s to protect the interest(s) of the consumers. So, yeah, I get annoyed when companies try to side-step regulation in pursuit of profit. And, so, yeah—I wish, in some cases, companies were reigned in a little more, and I’d have absolutely no problem with certain products being outright illegal.
For instance: no one needs a cigarette.
And I’m not even saying people shouldn’t be allowed to partake in tobacco. I’m instead saying that even people who should be allowed to enjoy tobacco deserve a better product than what is currently allowed to dominate the market, to the detriment of everyone; that tobacco companies bear some responsibility in putting out a good product at a fair price rather than an addictive piece of garbage literally designed to do harm. And they should be restricted to selling only to those capable of doing right by themselves : i.e—don’t market to children, don’t trick the consumer, etc…
In the case of Gems of War, I think OP would be a lot less upset if mythic ingots weren’t as costly as purple deeds. That’s the point.
No one’s saying you can’t sell mythic ingots.
People are saying mythic ingots should be sold with some integrity—a sense of ethics—and a sense of responsibility toward the consumer.
