In my opinion, video games started dying when companies began emphasizing online multiplayer as the main component of the game, rather than as an auxiliary to the single-player/split screen mode (c. 2007 or so). This opened the door for endless micro-transactions, "pay-to-win," and the vanilla game being only like 40% of the entire product. Anyone else remember when DLCs used to be like ordering dessert at a restaurant rather than a $100 installment plan for a $50 game?
Nowadays I only play old games and World of Tanks with a free account.
I'm not sure I'd go that far. I think what causes every problem you mention is the fact that a handful of companies dominate the third-party games market (Electronic Arts, Take-Two Interactive, Zenimax, Activision Blizzard, Capcom, Atari, Konami and the like exemplify this) and that most of these companies care less about game quality and more about the profits the games themselves make, and heavily-monetized massive hits (Overwatch was the worst offender, Grand Theft Auto Online a close second) made such a killing for their makers that the corporate executives all now want to make
that game.
In an ideal world this would result in the quality of games going through the roof, as the highest-quality tend to get the greatest recognition from games themselves. But making a game of that quality is hugely expensive and so the suits demand lower costs or additional profits. That's what drives paid DLCs - the content is complete and impressive, but selling a $60 game and then making players pay another $40 for additional content raises the margin on each unit and thus improves the odds of making a profit on a game.
But what's happened now is that pendulum has swung too far.
Fallout 76 and
Anthem were unfinished lumps of garbage shoved out the door in the hope of players buying it and then paying for the content it should have had in the first place, and the player base is livid about it.
FIFA Ultimate Team and the
Call of Duty and
Battlefield series have become essentially pay-to-win and the single most egregious way of profiting from games - lootboxes - are on their way to being banned in much of the modern world. The Player base being as angry at it is is actually a good thing, as it's going to start hurting the developers at some point (probably soon) and at that point their continued existence will depend on appeasing that angry base.
