So a friend wanted to go check out the deck last week and a bunch of of us went on a nice day. To get to the correct elevators in the building you have to go through monument to capitalism sales court of course. Then you are directed to you buy a ticket at a kiosk (which costs a few bucks more than if you buy it online) or from a worker - about $42. You are then screened and walked quickly follow a byzantine route to the elevator, where they copied the elevator experience of the Freedom Tower, but did not execute it nearly as well. And 100 floors later, after seeing a display but hearing not a word about the place, the doors open, there it is: The Edge (and of course the huge gift shop).
The place is nearly in the Hudson, so the views are nice (aside from the clutch of cranes overbuilding the city), and it has a deck, which is different, especially the glass section. So that's nice ... annnd that's it.
You do not learn anything about the place, how it came to be, facts about its construction or anything really, and there is nothing to tell you what landmarks you are looking for. (In theory, you could pull up Google Maps and see, but the phone signals are very spotty, so yeah, no.)
The inside is fairly bare. The staff inside and out is robotic and cold, most speaking only to one another. They are superficially friendly to their guests - few smiles - and they make it crystal clear that they really do not care.
Due to Covid, for your protection, the water fountain outside the restroom is closed , as well as the bathroom sink, which is attractively (/s) wrapped in cardboard and hazard tape. Inside it, distancing is encouraged but .. well, you know what happens.
Finally, if you would like to sit, and not on the floor, you must go upstairs, scan the QR code for the bar menu, and buy something so you will be allowed to go sit on the steps outside. Otherwise, just walk around looking at who knows exactly what, and tell yourself: I'm at the *Edge!* Whoooo!
Verdict: This is N.Y.C. For a view, you can definitely do better.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g60763-d4635491-r787208670-The_Edge-New_York_City_New_York.html#