Why Clash Royale's Card Evolution update is being called pay-to-win?

The Card Evolution update in Clash Royale has sparked interest among players because of its innovative method of upgrading old cards with new evolution shards. These shards can now be obtained through numerous methods throughout the game. However, with the announcement of a new offer by Supercell, the publisher of this arcade game, users are asking if this new update is intended to be a pay-to-win system in the game.

So far, Supercell has introduced four Card Evolutions: Royal Giant, Firecracker, Barbarian, and Skeletons. Players must collect evolution shards and unlock the evolved version of these cards to get these. However, Supercell has announced two new special packs for players to purchase evolution shards in Clash Royale: the Card Evolution Launch Special and the All Evolution Launch Special.

Players can purchase all the shards needed to develop all four cards in the game with the All Evolution Launch Special pack. It costs around $100 and varies by location. Players can purchase one evolution shard for each card at a time in the Card Evolution Launch Special. However, this can be redeemed six times for a certain card in the shop. It costs roughly $10 for each pack and varies by region.

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Why is Card Evolution in Clash Royale called pay-to-win by players?

Surgical Goblin, a two-time Clash Royale champion, tweeted about the latest update on shop offers in the game, claiming that the cost of the Card Evolution special packs is prohibitively expensive and will eventually benefit players willing to invest heavily in the game.

Orange juice gaming, a content creator for Clash Royale known for his dry humor, tweeted sarcastically, assuming that developing one Card Evolution would have cost him $100 rather than all four cards in Card Evolution in the game. One of his Brazilian admirers responded by saying it was unfair that he had to pay half of his country's minimum wage for a few evolution shards in the game.

What's more interesting is that, so far, only four cards are eligible for Card Evolution in Clash Royale. Fresh evolution cards will be introduced in the upcoming new seasons as the game advances. As a result, the investment in existing special packs will lose value over time in the game. It is also worth noting that Card Evolution powers will likely be nerfed in the future to balance out the game for each player in Clash Royale.

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Players have criticized the Card Evolution update since it appears to favor the ones who spend money on the game. The basic issue is that players who invest real money in the game level up their cards faster, giving them an advantage over others who do not want to or cannot afford to spend money. As a result, some players have coined the phrase "pay-to-win" to describe the update.

Some believe this undermines Clash Royale's skill-based aspect by making it more about having higher-leveled cards than strategic gameplay.

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It is also crucial to note that these are the opinions and complaints of certain gamers, and not everyone may agree. The perception of this arcade game as "pay-to-win" might vary depending on personal experiences and tastes.