>PRICE REQUIRED TO GET EACH UNLOCKABLE WEAPON IN TF2: 80 SCRAP (using scrap.tf) as a resource)>PRICE OF 80 SCRAP: $0.42Therefore you can get literally every weapon in TF2 for 40 cents (ignoring random drops, achievement unlocks, contracts, etc), which is why the game can remain competitive
IN COMPARISON
>If they give microtransactions to give out free Rare Candies, there's less incentive for them to provide more anti-grind QoL features, and more incentive for them to cut out third party grind-skipping options (i.e injections) and dramatically increase the amount of time it takes to level up Pokemon (examples in action: Fallout 76, briefly with PAYDAY 2, Pokemon Go, Star Wars Battlefront 2)>If they give out microtransactions for Master Balls, they're unlikely to do anything interesting with catching mechanics, and more likely to either reduce catch rates, or do sneaky shit to make stuff harder to catch like giving legendaries roaming mechanics/moves like Memento/Recover/Roar (Examples in action: Fallout 76)If companies give financial incentives for players to skip grinding or give themselves a competitive edge, companies are then directly incentivised themselves to simultaniously reward and encourage the most frequent spenders on these microtransactions (i.e, whales) to the detriment of literally everyone else
