Resident Evil 4 microtransactions are a thing now

Whaddya buyin’

Resident Evil 4 microtransactions are now available to upgrade your weapons and they really don’t need to be. Capcom added these purchases on digital storefronts the same day they updated Resi 4 with its revamped Mercenaries mode.

You can spend $3 to $7 and get one or a handful of weapon upgrade tickets. Take these to the merchant, and you can upgrade your weapon and get its special perk without having to level it up. Once you unlock it, the weapon upgrade is even free! Except you just spent real-world money to unlock it instead of in-game Spinels. So, not exactly free, then.

Previous games in the survival horror series also included optional purchases, for health, ammo, and even crafting resources. That was in addition to what you could acquire in the game, though – not just a way to get it faster.

You can technically play the entire game without an upgrade, but even if you want to max out everything, you really don’t need to spend money to do it. As the upgrade ticket description itself says, you can and do unlock enhancements for Leon’s weapons naturally by playing the game. 

The new side quests mean you’re rarely short of a Spinel or two, or 10,000, to buy perks and upgrades with. Your weapon upgrade progress carries over in New Game Plus, and you can even buy back upgraded weapons that you sold to the merchant.

Like the treasure map and other add-ons before them, these extra purchases aren’t really doing any harm. Just don’t think you’re missing out on anything if you decide not to splash out to get them, because you definitely aren’t.