Yes, you can (barely) hit Gold in the Arena through f2p. However, that's gonna take at least 3 years of semi-regular gameplay...If it weren't for the guild mechanic, I'd've dropped this game years ago...
I feel like this game is also venturing into pay-2-play territory, on top of the p2w aspect. Scrap the energy system, scrap the vip shop, but keep the shard shop and we might just have a mighty contender for the likes of Hearthstone. Alas, in reality the shopping mechanic here is actually getting worse byt he day...
I wonder if it's the memory leaks that crash my browser when I try to load up the game...seriously, one time I checked the task manager, which showed over _8 gigs_ of memore usage coming from the browser... -.-*
I really have to concur with the sentiment a few comments below. The Kred-based VIP system has gotta go! Only shards and gold, and make shards easier to obtain(like in BattleHand, Bit Heroes etc...). Then just scrap the awful pvp matchmaking algorithms, and we might actually see this game returning to its glory days!
...then there's the preloader issue too...
Once again, scrolling through comments, I'm seeing so much obliviousness to the fact that devs need something to live off... There's a difference between having a bare minimum of premium stuff to make the game succesful a business, or just trying to cash in on everything imaginable, this I will admit. I do think this particular game falls into the latter category though, don't get me wrong. In such cases, I wouldn't pay even if I had heaps upon heaps of cash...
Tl;dr: having a cash store isn't wrong, but making it the game's sole purpose is.
To join in on the p2w conversation: I understand devs need to monetize somehow. P2w on it's own is fine to a certain extent, but if you add pay-2-play to the concoction too, you're effectively stumping the game's potential. I wouldn't even be playing anymore if I hadn't amassed a good collection of legendaries back when the game was still _somewhat_ fair...
The mysterious egg will hatch Narix, which can later be evolved. He'll ultimately become a mythic-tier card, but it will take MANY embersouls to get to that point, as each evolution costs many more souls. They're a rare-ish drop at the Seastone Citadel. Mythic flasks also help, especially when evolving from egg-tier, because that doesn't cost too much.
What players need to understand, is that freemium content helps keep free games free. If a game is to stay updated, developers need something to live off. That being said, freemium can be implemented in the right or the wrong way, which breaks the game balance. But here's the thing: this game is leaning towards the latter! -___-
Yes! Finally someone who says it as it is! Freemium is indeed a thing born of necessity, even if it's a nuisance sometimes.
To keep a game updated, especially if they're adding new features, developers need their salary. Of course there are less balance-breaking ways to earn money, such as subscription or a 1-off license/account purchase. However, you won't avoid spending money with those options; if you wanna play for free, you can't always have the cake and eat it too.
There seems to be little logic to the new chest system. I mean, I'm in gold 2 and i get mostly gold chests, no platinums, then suddenly: ruby chest!!! Lolwut now?
I have to concur with all the recent comments! Even though this is an entertaining game, the fact that it took me a year to create a decent deck is just ridiculous!!!