Regardless of what they insist in these review replies, it's clear that the way the game is coded facilitates more opportunities to put you in a position where you're pressured into purchasing bonus cards. A lot of the new bonuses and mechanics added to the game involve discarding a lot of your cards quickly so that you're close to a victory when something — whether that be a cartoonishly large stack of cards, a boss mechanic, or simply "bad luck" — sweeps the rug out from under you, prompting the game to encourage you to buy more booster cards to complete the level. The game doesn't do this for the first few chapters, presumably to hook you onto what is admittedly enjoyable gameplay before you run out of free items and the distribution of cards among your automated opponents becomes a case of pay-to-win. I know this is just the mobile gaming industry now, so I shouldn't be surprised, but combined with the glaringly obvious AI-generated assets throughout the game, I found the obvious predatory nature of the game to be egregious even for the typical slop on the App Store. You could feasibly play the game without purchasing anything, but as you progress, the constant mechanics to get you down to 2-3 cards quickly honestly take a lot of the strategy out of it in favor of finding new, creative ways to dump 10+ cards on you in hopes that you'll pay $0.99 for a virtual card and don't notice the empty victory you get from the reward being nothing more than a sticker of a poorly cropped international monument.
Hello! Although the purchases of in-game items do assist with progression within the game by providing more opportunities, they do not increase your chances of winning. In-game items are only available as a way for players to show their support for the game. You can still have a winning experience by practicing good strategy, timing and of course some luck. Your thoughts are always considered and carefully relayed to the team for processing and deeper consideration in the future. Thank you!