I don't play free to play games due to stuff like this. At the end of the day I feel like the game is simply an excuse to milk my wallet dry for no good reason, or invest an ungodly amount of hours for that same progression. I'm sure this means I'm missing some great games (I've only checked the first 15 minutes or so of Genshin Impact, for instance) but the moment I see a game is Free to play, no matter how look or fun it looks, I just can't help but steer away from it (for better or worse).
Please don't take me wrong, I'm not judging people that play AND spend money on these games, it's just that I've never clicked with the ones I tried. The only one free to play game I played for a good amount of time was Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory, and it's been a while already...