Warner Bros. has announced in a community forum that Middle Earth: Shadow of War will be getting rid of microtransactions by July of 2018. The excerpt regarding the in-game DLC is as follows:
“The core promise of the Nemesis System is the ability to build relationships with your personal allies and enemies in a dynamic open world. While purchasing Orcs in the Market is more immediate and provides additional player options, we have come to realize that providing this choice risked undermining the heart of our game, the Nemesis System. It allows you to miss out on the awesome player stories you would have otherwise created, and it compromises those same stories even if you don’t buy anything. Simply being aware that they are available for purchase reduces the immersion in the world and takes away from the challenge of building your personal army and your fortresses. In order to fully restore the core promise of the Nemesis System, we’ll be permanently removing Gold, War Chests and the Market from Shadow of War. This means the option to purchase Gold with real-world money and the ability to gain Orc Followers from War Chests will be removed. There will be a specific amount of time given for players to utilize their unused Gold. If players have unused Gold by the end of the time allotted to spend it, any remaining Gold will be converted to in-game items.“
Players have until May 8, 2018, to purchase in-game currency with real-world money, while July 17, 2018, will mark the last day to use the virtual coinage. July will also see the permanent removal of gold, war chests, as well as the market.
This is part of a series of free updates that will be coming to the game later this year. The major update is, of course, the above-mentioned removal, but will also feature narrative improvements to Shadow Wars. This will feature “new narrative elements” and will also be streamlined to make for a more “cohesive experience.” There will also be new perks, upgrades, skins, and general fixes to gameplay.