Resident Evil 4 Remake adds microtransactions so you can pay to ruin the best part of the game

Out of nowhere, Resident Evil 4 Remake slipped in some blatantly pay-to-win microtransactions to go with its much-anticipated Mercenaries DLC, so now you can pay just $2.99 to ruin the best part of the entire game.

Resident Evil 4 is a game about guns, and feeling those guns get stronger as you upgrade them is one of the most satisfying loops in any survival horror game. Hoarding treasures for max gem value, carefully budgeting your limited money, agonizing over whether to upgrade your mag size or reload first (but after your damage, obviously) – managing your guns is a driving force for the game's flow. This satisfaction peaks with exclusive upgrades you can only unlock after maxing out all of a gun's stats, or with a pricey exclusive ticket sold by the merchant – or, now, the power of your credit card.

Thanks to the new Weapon Exclusive Upgrade Tickets which are now available for $2.99 a pop, or in bundles of three or five offering minor discounts, you can instantly acquire the exclusive upgrade for any weapon regardless of how much you've upgraded it. These tickets are added to your treasure inventory, and will be available across all of your save files. Ain't microtransactions grand?

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These exclusive upgrades are huge, usually dramatically increasing a weapon's damage, its ability to pierce through multiple enemies, or the odds of dealing critical hits that can one-shot just about anything. Beyond ruining the fun of working toward an exclusive upgrade, these tickets are sure to butcher the game's difficulty curve. I can't imagine how busted it would be to start the game with an exclusively upgraded pistol or shotgun, for example.

I realize this isn't the first game to do this, or even the first Capcom game, plus you could already buy stuff like the deluxe edition's Sentinel Nine pistol and Skull Shaker shotgun, but these kinds of microtransactions always leave a bad taste in my mouth. Obviously this is a single-player game and you can just not buy these, and that's absolutely what I recommend. If you're struggling with the game, play on a lower difficulty or adjust the settings to improve the auto-aim. Check out our Resident Evil 4 tips! But don't wreck your experience by swiping for upgrades that should feel special.

Here are all the Resident Evil 4 weapons and the best choices among them.

Austin has been a game journalist for 12 years, having freelanced for the likes of PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree. He's been with GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize his position is a cover for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a lot of news and the occasional feature, all while playing as many roguelikes as possible.