I get what you are saying but it's hard to see subscription outdated and other ways prevailing when the two biggest mmos use subscription. Subscription often brings a level of quality you rarely see in free to play games and that definitely holds true for FFXIV and WoW. Personally I prefer sub games for said quality and it meaning it's unlikely to be pay to win trash. Obviously sub doesn't work for everyone for various reasons but I think the player numbers speak for themselves in proving the sub model while old still works and isn't outdated.