Path of Exile is the type of game that people will play for a decade+ (See Diablo 2) and appeals to the type of gamer willing to dedicate fanatical amounts of time to it

So it is made for addicts? I agree with you there, that's why I said it is smart, it has all the tricks to keep you hooked

These are not the type of gamers who pay to win; in fact, I'd venture to say that most of them are willing to pay so much precisely because it isn't pay to win

This will shock you, but those are the same people on paper. It's not 'this guy is trying to win' and 'this guy just likes costumes', it's 'we have successfully created a way to get money from both of these people, now how can we get more from them'

The most expensive packs include the ability to design your own in-game item (which they don't even give you, you have to find it)

Firstly, being able to have that much control in a multiplayer game is potentially really gamebreaking, and if you can't make an item to that degree then it's hardly worth the price is it. Secondly, paying for some you still have to go and look for? what? It's like buying a car except you have to find where it is with no clues, is it parked on a street? is it in a shop? who knows, but it's 'yours'

I don't understand how people can't see how hard they are being scammed. I know people are having what they think is a good time whilst getting scammed, but you can get that elsewhere and still have money for rent. It's such a taboo thing to discuss with gamers though because they will lose their minds at you, they interpret it as 'every single gamer ever is addicted and a bad person', no man, it's not like that, it's a part of modern culture that needs to be addressed, it's not a personal attack.