I don't understand how you can be forced to buy cosmetic items.
The gatcha gambling system, also known as loot boxes, are designed to rarely give out any top tier rewards.
It is designed like this, to bait weak willed users into gambling money at a chance to get the item they want. The chances of getting that item are extremely slim, and will require hundreds of dollars to be spent.
In many European countries they have banned this type of Gambling designed to cheat weak willed children. Hopefully everywhere else will eventually follow and ban this type of rigged gambling.
You can only earn something like 45 free Apex Packs, which in total only gives you around a 7% chance to get even one Legendary Item. After that they have completely locked everything else behind a pay wall.
This is going to drive away a lot of the F2P player base in the long run, as after hitting level 100, there is not point to playing, since you aren't gaining any real rewards. You can't even buy skins promoted in store with the in game currency without first paying real cash to unlock a skin you may not even want. Thus further pushing more players away.
The system was designed for max greed, to try and maximize EA profits, however it is doing the exact opposite, as most people realize this type of system should be illegal everywhere.
EA is completely aware of this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loot_box
"Electronic Arts' games FIFA 18 and FIFA 19 were also called out by the Commission, however, EA did not make any modifications to these games; EA had previously stated in May 2018 that it did not believe the implementation of loot boxes in their games constituted gambling.[139] As such, the Commission has started actions with the Belgian courts to initiate legal action against EA by September 10, 2018, though whether such action is possible would be a decision of the public prosecutor’s office.[140]Ultimately on January 29, 2019, EA announced that it would stop selling FIFA Ultimate Team packs with microtransactions to players in Belgium by February, bringing them into compliance with the Commission.[141]"
Even EA was forced to bend the knee or face legal repercussions. They are completely aware they are targeting people with gambling addictions, and don't have any moral senses to do the right thing, without fear of legal repercussions.
