10 Exact Moments Hated Video Games Were Saved
9. Removing Lootboxes - Middle-Earth: Shadow Of War
A theme you'll notice on this list is that games tend to get a lot better once microtransactions of any kind are removed. Even if it's the smallest, most technically harmless implementation, a game is almost always improved by their absence.
A notable example then, is Middle-Earth: Shadow of War.
Shadow of War had a lot to live up to, what with its predecessor being one of the most universally acclaimed games of 2014. And it did not get off to a good start, WB having filled it with microtransactions and lootboxes galore that were nigh impossible for players to ignore. If they were just an optional thing that existed in a multiplayer mode or were brought up once and then never again, it would be negligible, but the game obsessively shoved the microtransactions in players' faces, which only added to their growing ire.
Fortunately, after a few months of blowback - record time for corporations actually addressing fan concerns - the lootbox system was removed and all was better for it.