There aren’t very many words that can so effectively ignite the fiery passion of the gaming community than microtransactions. Tripwire Interactive learned this with the just-announced Trading Floor, a new in-game shop in Killing Floor 2 where players can take a break from murdering Zeds to purchase cosmetic goods.

“The Trading Floor allows immediate access and purchase of these items outside of the field of combat,” reads an announcement on the official website. “Simply access the Trading Floor and peruse the available selections anytime, from the comfort of your quarters. These items are designed and made by people just like you. Buy their creations, learn their secrets, use them better and, most importantly, look good doing it!”

Some members of the community aren’t having it.

For now, the Trading Floor won’t have any impact on the delicate gameplay balance that must be maintained in every multiplayer game. It exists so Tripwire can use the additional funding to invest in future content, such as “new and ever-more exotic locations in which to exterminate the Zed menace.” These free updates cost them money, so it makes sense that they’d want to create an additional source of income to keep them coming.

As first reported by Destructoid, the Trading Floor has been met with an overwhelmingly negative response from players. The backlash is coming from a few different places. Some are upset that an Early Access game is charging for content, others have simply refocused their lingering frustration after last month’s Payday 2 loot safe fiasco, and then there’s this Q&A from the Trading Floor FAQ.

Q: Will I have to spend money to remain competitive?

A: No. All of the content added in Trading Floor at launch will be cosmetic only and not affect gameplay in any way. In the future we may be adding weapons with new gameplay for sale, but this will appear in the “Shared Content” area on the server. This means that, if any player on the server has a weapon (like the Chivalry Zweihander now), then every player on the server will be able to use it. No-one gets any “advantage”. Co-op game – everyone starts out equal! Our goal is for any such weapons to be side grades anyway, so they won’t provide an edge over the current tier of weapon power.

There are valid points on each side. Tripwire needs money to continue making progress on Killing Floor 2 and their fans need to know they aren’t being cheated.

“Not much time left to change anything before the update, but we are listening.” wrote Tripwire Vice President Alan Wilson in a response to the community. “And, to those asking “why not get the game out of Early Access first?” – well, here’s your answer. Feedback, leading to changes in what we are doing with this, changes to future plans. So that, when the game comes out of Early Access, it is actually finished, with core systems like this ironed out and working the way people want it to.

There’s no release date for this update yet. When it does arrive, it will bring with it two maps and the new Gunslinger perk, in addition to the Trading Floor. Out of curiosity – where do you stand on this?