I’m so frustrated that I just need to put this somewhere — I’m giving up on Duolingo today after 328 continuous days of using it. They have this thing called a streak, or your total days of continuous use, and so I’ve been using Duolingo every day for 328 days.
I’m getting off track, my disappointment has nothing to do with my streak and everything to do with Duolingo’s monetization strategy. They know people have become hooked on having a long streak, so they’ve decided now it’ll cost you to keep it. To be fair, you can earn their virtual currency to retain your streak should you forget your daily lesson a day here or there, but now that virtual currency is harder to earn and the cost of retaining that streak has gone up. Oh sure, they’ll sell you more virtual currency, but why even have virtual currency? I think it misses the point of trying to learn another language.
So, I’ve done some research and just now signed up, and paid for, a year of busuu, and so far it’s as good or better than Duolingo in every way that’s important to me. On top of that, I can send my own practice phrases (written or audio) and other users will critique them and provide feedback, and I get to do the same. That feels very gratifying to me.
Anyway, I hate to give up the streak, but it’s time.