As much as it may hurt to admit, gaming economies (and microtransactions) are a part of modern gaming, and necessary for producers to make money from their products.
So yes, I'm sure it would easy enough for PD to make a bunch of extra races with big payouts, but commercially it probably doesn't make sense for them.
This is just completely false.
In enters Elden Ring. Sells nearly 17 million copies within six months of its end-of-February 2022 release. Not a single microtransaction. In 2022.
In enters Hades. An indie title that during its two years of early access sold 700'000 copies. Let me add that even in Early Access it felt like a nearly finished game. It sold another 300'000 in its first three days after release. Further sales aren't known but it sold incredibly well; 180'000 reviews on Steam, and not many players bother leave one. Not one microtransaction.
In enters Stardew Valley. A one-man titan of a game which as of May 2022 has sold 20 million copies since its release in January 2020. No microtransactions.
In enters Valheim. 10 million copies between its February 2021 release and now. No microtransactions.
In enters Terraria. 35 million copies as of March 2021 after a decade on the market; literally THE best selling game on Steam. You guessed it, no microtransactions.
It's unbelievable but sometimes it really is enough to just make a good game to make a lot of money.
If you price your game at the AAA tier of $60-70 and still use microtransactions, you're no longer trying to make a lot of money. You're trying to make all the conceivable money in the world, either because "enough" doesn't exist in your dictionary, or you are not confident in your game's commercial success.
I'll say it again, microtransactions have no place in games with an entry fee, let alone in a 70-dollar first party PlayStation title. I am willing to die on this hill; I'm done with constantly giving companies a pass because something "has become normal".
