It’s easy to avoid the worst offenders. Also “live service” is a very broad term and covers a lot.
One aspect that I really don’t like is when games just seem to hang on too long with updates and/or DLC. Be proud to finish the game and move on to something new (looking at you The Long Dark…)
The question can be asked for most things in life really so just do both options. Generally I’m a “value for money” gamer now but If something catches my eye I will make an effort to support it.
Survival game set in the cold Canadian wilderness. Most “survival” games are actually just boring crafting games but TLD is very different for me as it is mostly about exploring in the freezing cold with natural predators around to keep you on edge.
I like the fact they tried to compete with Steam from the begining. I have a large library of games and some real gems that I wouldn’t normally look at.
EGS is ok, GOG is ok and also Steam is just ok too for what I want from a store/launcher.