A hot potato: Unlike some games where microtransactions are purely cosmetic, in Gran Turismo Sport, the cars are the game. Being able to unlock vehicles without investing hours of time grinding will no doubt appeal to some and generate extra revenue but will surely rub others the wrong way.

Sony Interactive Entertainment and Polyphony Digital on Monday released the July update for Gran Turismo Sport, the PlayStation 4's flagship racing game. The update includes several new additions, one of which could be quite controversial.

The July update introduces seven new vehicles - the Mercedes AMG W08 EQ Power+ 2018, the Mazda 787B '91, the Ford GT LM Spec II test car, the Ferrari 2250 GTO CN.3729GT '62, the Honda Beat '91, the Honda S660 '15 and the Daihatsu Copen Active Top '02 - as well as a new track called Circuit de Sainte-Croix with six layouts (three forward, three in reverse), the ability to apply decals to racing suits and helmets and three new GT League events.

The biggest new feature, however, is the addition of microtransactions. Vehicles that cost less than 2,000,000 in-game credits can now be purchased directly from the PlayStation Store. You'll still have to grind to get the higher-end cars, it seems.

When asked last year if Gran Turismo Sport would have microtransactions, Kazunori Yamauchi, CEO of Polyphony Digital, said, "No."

In fairness, that was nearly a year ago and before the title's launch. The gaming landscape has changed a lot over the past year and microtransactions, love them or hate them, are rather common these days.

Microtransactions are available now in the Americas and Asian regions and will roll out to Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Oceanic regions on August 2.