In-game transactions are not new. They are the main source of income for video game developers and companies that maintain free-to-play games. For the most part, they're reasonable too. For example, most skins in Fortnite cost around $20 when converted to real dollars. The same holds true for other popular free-to-play titles.
While there are certain cases where a free-to-play game sells much more expensive skin or in-game cosmetics, they are usually special and somewhat rare, and the relevant game will have usually been around for a long time too.
Pokemon Unite hasn't been available to play publicly for more than a few months. Yet, the game's developers are already getting a lot of flack for releasing not just one, but two skins that are priced at $39.99 each.
