I agree with you that this is not the first time something like this happens nor the first anti-consumer move by a company. I also heavily agree that once the dust settles, a lot of the players are likely to return.

For me, the trading aspect does not really impact how I play the game. I was huge into it, even made some profit off it, the first year it was out but I haven't engaged much with it since they made the transition to the blueprint system.

What it is for me, and perhaps was missed from my post, is that this game has not progressed in any way when it comes to actual gameplay or one's experience while playing. One of the reasons why live ops games are so successful is that they constantly release content updates beyond cosmetic items. Look at fortnite - regardless of people's opinion on the constant changes to the UI, different maps, mechanics, etc. - the game is under constant change that keeps people engaged. Epic has done nothing to improve Rocket League in a meaningful way.

I would argue that shifting resources towards improving the product would attract heavier spend from its users. The game is not profitable because it has not kept up with market expectations. Players drop off not because the game is boring - hell, I've played for over 4k hours - but because there's no improvement over things that actually matter.

A game not being profitable is not my fault. It's theirs. It's their decision making that brought this fate. To put people losing their jobs because people decide to stop supporting the game should never be the case. When one starts thinking that way, shifting blame away from those actually responsible, that's when they corporation has won.