Plants Vs Zombies Garden Warfare is finally getting microtransactions. This is on top of the DLC they are adding to the game, which is, by theory, available for free. We'll elaborate on this below.
Popcap revealed this in a blog post which also revealed the updates they were adding to the game. This includes an overhaul of Gardens & Graveyards scoring, Gnome Bomb and Garden Ops coin rewards, Garden Ops solo and 2 player bonuses, and even more coin rewards for more activities in Boss Mode.
In terms of free content, players are getting a new Gardens & Graveyards map called Cactus Canyon, 8 new playable character choices, 200 new customization options, the Zomboss Down sticker pack, 10 new achievements, new plant reinforcements, a higher character level cap at 30, and even more fixes, and changes.
So, how does Popcap get to say all the DLC is free and bring microtransactions in too? In essence, it works much like other free to play games, it turns out. The game had a coin element from the start. You earn coins from collecting kills and playing well, and those coins were then used to purchase DLC. Now, you can buy coins for yourself in the Sticker Shop, where, of course, you would be buying the hard to earn content in the 1st place.
As this (official guide) points out, the game is designed to make earning coins hard in general, with matches capped at 50 kills. You can earn as much as 5,000 coins in Gardens and Graveyards, but astute observers could have seen this a mile away.
Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare is playable now on Xbox 360 and Xbox One, with a Windows port coming late spring of this year.