O Free MMO, Where Art Thou?

Free MMOs are amazing. They generally have enormous communities and a large player base. Development CAN be lacking, but from what I've seen, free games generally stay up-to-date due to dedicated developers. Strangely, the free MMO seems to be a phenomenon with Asian companies, such as Ijji and Nexon. These hidden, free gems are always exciting, knowing that I can quit any time and say 'Hey, not like I put any real cash effort into this'. Sadly, these games are disappearing. EVERY free MMO that I know of has gone Micro-Transaction. All of them. Again, these micro-transactions seem to be a phenomenon with Asian games. All the Ijji and Nexon games (Maplestory, Gunz...) are prime examples of this. Now this is a great business model for companies, but often the only way to get good at these free to play games is to purchase special weapons or armor, and in the long run, paying for your constantly expiring purchased items can end up costing more than a usual monthly fee. This may turn away many players immediately, and for those that stay around there seems to be a lack of a feeling of accomplishment. Those enormous animated angel wings, 1-Hit Kill Sword, and ridiculous godly aura aren't because of your divine Maplestory skills. They're because you bought a $20 prepaid card at Target the other day. Of course, 50 Million people worldwide subscribe to Maplestory (As of 2006). I am still trying out Maplestory, but by the way things are going now, I'm thinking I will not be one of those 50 Million. Recently, on a particular server, a bag of 1,000,000 Mesos (In-Game Currency) was sold for dirt cheap in the 'Cash Shop', which has caused an economic meltdown. In short, these microtransactions ruin the game.

As for some of the other games, we'll take GunZ for example. GunZ is an MMOFPS, with lots of diving and jumping, somewhat akin to The Matrix. Now with an FPS your success is mostly tied to your actual skill in that game, not your character's stats. This game is also ruined by microtransaction purchases, because those willing to pay are able to gain access to significantly enhanced items. I could understand paying a little extra to look real cool, but the competition in an MMO should be based on skill and effort, not the amount of money you spent in the Cash Shop. Monthly-Payment type MMOs, everyone (Generally) has a fair chance starting out in the game.

I'd rather pay to play than pay to win.

(Tl;dr I won't be playing those former "Free MMOs" any more.)