The new update made dying more expensive, and general progression slower. The game was constant grinding to begin with. Now it's constant grinding but on .5 speed. I haven't played this game a lot, but in my experience the first/second ranks are the most fun. Everything after that is more grinding for gameplay that feels less interesting. And just because it's free to play doesn't mean it can't be pay to win. The devs know this.
Oh and it crashes constantly if your on Mac, even with the lowest possible settings.