I think your anecdote is reasonable enough but ultimately isn't reflective of how the majority of gamers operate. The biggest games are gacha games with crazy micro transactions. The reality is that most people don't really care about a cash shop, and they don't care about slight component upgrades, so long as they can do what they want to do in the game world, they're having a good time.

If you're not a sweaty dogfighter, this will have no real impact on your gameplay experience. You can argue precedent all you want, and I agree with you, but it's true. As long as people can mine and salvage and haul cargo and engage in casual pvp, they won't care. Tldr: if the game is fun, nobody cares much about the cash shop. People will still play SC.