More and more, thar seems to be the case. They used to release the character bundle closer to the end of the event. And the character used to be $9.99. Now you can grab him as soon as he is available, and for at least five dollars more. But then, I can see their rationale. For folks that haven't been paying as close attention to the game as they should and now they aren't up to welcoming the final character, it becomes a 'you snooze, you lose scenario'. Regular player's will get the character for free. Others will have to pay for him.