To DLC or not to DLC, that is the question.
What are your thoughts on DLC?
So far, I've heard two camps: those who feel that DLC benefits games by allowing for development of small batches of bonus content that may otherwise not have been released; and those who feel that developers use DLC as a way to release unfinished games and then later fleece consumers for as much money as possible.
Are there any games or DLC packs in particular that make or break your support for DLC in general?
So far, I've heard two camps: those who feel that DLC benefits games by allowing for development of small batches of bonus content that may otherwise not have been released; and those who feel that developers use DLC as a way to release unfinished games and then later fleece consumers for as much money as possible.
Are there any games or DLC packs in particular that make or break your support for DLC in general?
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For instance, Nyah Cat has DLC that includes costume changes like Pothead Nyah Cat and Rave Nyah Cat. Cool stuff. Dragon's Age has
I liked Batman's DLC to get Robin and Nightwing. Cosmetic and new campaign challenges for cheap. Nothing critical to the game, just added fun.
Yeah that's dumb.
However, most companies are only interested in abusing the system to squeeze more money out of customers. Paying for purely cosmetic stuff just seems...frivolous to me. And Day 1/on-disc/pay-to-unlock DLC is just plain unethical. In any other business, charging full price for an incomplete product and expecting them to pay extra for the rest would be illegal.
But seriously, a game isn't a pound of bread. There's no unit of measure that constitutes a "complete" game. People act like the extra content would be included free if there was no concept of DLC, but it's just as likely that the extra content wouldn't exist. Companies are basing their budgets with X dollars toward the main game and X dollars toward the DLC, and the delivery method of the final content is irrelevant if the man-hours to make it came from a budget based on people paying extra to use it.
Of course, I prefer when DLC is actually developed later, because that allows it to be more dynamic and reactive to player feedback, or in the case of something like Rock Band, it allows the game to keep living forever. Which is cool.
I don't have a problem with it since it was essentially painless copy protection.
But see, frivolous is exactly the sort of DLC I don't have a problem with. If I want to spend a dollar so my brutebot can wear a silly hat, that's my one dollar. It's non critical to the game, it doesn't add or subtract anything substantial.
Likewise, I don't mind paying for a substantial DLC, like an extravagant mission pack that adds almost another story.
The one thing I agree is when stories and plots are left to DLC as a way to goad players into purchases. I didn't pay to be left dangling.
And those people are wrong. Creating extra levels and implementing them into a game is not that simple and cheap, it requires a whole lot of forward planning and money. Ask anyone in the industry, the people making the games, they'll all tell the same thing: DLCs exist to fight used games market, by keeping the used games shelves empty and lowering the value of used games, and to fight piracy, by requiring you to log on their servers to validate the legitimacy of your copy.
People are less likely to pirate or resell their games when there's a DLC around the corner, and they're less likely to buy a game used if there's a pre order bonus or a zero day DLC requiring a one time use activation code the guy who owned the game before them most likely redeemed. The couple of bucks you shell is peanuts for companies making DLCs, it barely covers what it cost to produce them, the bread and butter for these companies is the fifty bucks they get whenever they sell a new copy.
Personally, as long DLCs add extra hours of gameplay and not useless skins and armors for your mounts, I'm in. I've always been a sucker for expansion packs. Console/system exclusive DLCs and contents, now that pisses me off.
I don't have a problem with doing it either. It was just stupid how they announced it as part of the game... then when it was released, "oh yeah, by the way, you have to redeem a code and download it". I don't mind this sort of copy protection, but just tell us that to begin with.
Okay, this I can understand. Nobody likes false advertising.
But frankly, I just do not understand how someone could spend real money on outfits and cosmetic stuff like that. I assume it would be easy to program, and there are lots of people out there that buy it obviously, so it makes business sense and I don't begrudge the developers for doing it, but I just don't get it. What difference does it make if the character's shirt is a different color? How can this possibly make you have more fun with the game? But then again, I'm the guy who's always decrying the overemphasis of graphics and cinematics in modern video games at the expense of gameplay and length.
As for new missions and characters and that kind of thing, the only DLC I've bought in this category would be the Zaeed one from Mass Effect 2, and it was a mistake. A pretty lame excuse for a character, and the mission was bleh. Maybe I just got the wrong DLC for this game. It left a bad taste in my mouth though, and I think I'll just stick with retail versions from now on.
The point of cheap costume switches is exactly that they're cheap, produce an immediate fulfillment sensation and then the thrill is gone. You paid your money's worth (hopefully).
Other DLC I've seen seems like they should have been in the game to begin with, like having to buy the DX additions to Sonic Adventure as DLC.
If it gives you enjoyment, then go forth and buy new costumes! It doesn't make any difference to me. But personally, I don't even like it when a game has unlockables that are cosmetic. To actually buy a game, and then have to spend real additional money for costumes, is just unthinkable to me.
Kasumi is a much better character, and her mission is better. Also, the Overlord, Arrival and Lair of the Shadow Broker missions are good. The only problem I have with Bioware's DLC is that they aren't available through Steam. =\
I'm not sure I like the idea of not being able to access my DLC if the company goes under, nor that DLC for BioWare's games never goes on sale.
I thought the same but then Magicka had the Gamer Robes pack including a tentacle robe that I just had to buy.
Yes Zaeed was a quite bad DLC but it was free if you bought the game new / used the Cerebrus DLC key. And that is acceptable.
There's single-player DLC, which is generally extra missions and stories. The stuff made for Fallout would fall under this, as would Minerva's Den for Bioshock 2 and Piggy's Perfect 10 for Enslaved (to pick a slightly more obscure example). This sort of thing I'm absolutely fine with, because it feels like expansion packs of old, only smaller and (usually) cheaper. More companies need to collet all this DLC and release it as an actual expansion (ala Game of the Year or Ultimate Editions), because then I'd be more inclined to buy all of it, but yeah, I'm cool with this stuff (so long as the price is right).
The second type of DLC is what I call 'cosmetic stuff', although most people would probably think of it as multiplayer-oriented extras. This is stuff like new maps and outfits that prolong the experience, but only in a small manner. Again, I don't have so much of a problem with this, but I find that it is almost always overpriced. It's also the sort of stuff you used to get for free (hi Epic, remember those bonus packs? Those were awesome). I'll occasionally pick one up, but I'll usually regret it afterwards.
The final set of DLC is what I like to call the gamebreaking stuff. This is things like new weapons that are far, FAR more powerful then the ones you get in game, unbalanced characters, or experience boosts. This also includes basic quests that reward you with uber-powerful items, so hello Bioware! I am NOT OK with this sort of stuff, since it unbalances the original game in an incredibly unfair way, especially if you play online.
In theory, I'm OK with the concept of DLC. The problem is that a lot of companies don't get how it should work and just release stuff that most people WILL NOT GET. All those extra vehicles for Just Cause 2? Why? The constant glut of stuff for the Dawn of War series? Who buys those?
Honestly, I'd be happiest if we just returned to the good ol' expansion packs of yore. They seemed to work pretty well, giving a decent amount of single-player content at a fairly decent price. I miss them.
But since DLC seems here to stay, I'd like to ask companies once again to consider a pack with all the DLC for a game. Surely that would make sense? OK, you might not make quite as much money, but it'd be so much more useful for a new player who's got the game behind the rush. I'm usually a while behind everyone else, and I can't imagine I'm the only one. It doesn't have to be on disc, it can be downloadable, but collecting it all together just seems like good common sense, and that would at least feel somewhat reminiscent of the good ol' expansion pack.
Ah well, I'm waxing lyrical at this point. In short: DLC is OK, if done right. Which it rarely is outside of RPGs, and even then... it's very hit and miss.
Also, Capcom's on-disc DLC content was just BS and they should be castrated for that. I mean, sure, Mortal Kombat had *some* DLC on the disc itself, but the data wasn't really complete at all, and the rest of the DLC wasn't really on the disc at all. With Capcom, ALL data was on the disc. Both for Marvel vs. Capcom 3 as well as Street Fighter x Tekken. Oh yeah, and Street Fighter IV also. But I also think the one thing where Capcom dropped the ball is with Resident Evil 5 and its multiplayer DLC.
One sort of DLC I absolutely think should at all times exist are songpacks for music games, like SingStar or Rock Band. Since the SingStore, SingStar really hasn't released a new SingStar version in quite a while, only releasing SingStar Guitar and SingStar Dance. That's an example of DLC done in a good way.
LittleBigPlanet's DLC I have mixed feelings about. On one hand you have the costume packs and level packs. The costume packs are just for cosmetics, although you can use these costumes on NPCs in LittleBigPlanet 2. The level packs often don't just give new levels, in fact, they're only there to give you new level items, like stickers or materials. Both are pretty fun, and pretty optional. However, there are currently three level packs that basically are made essential. They're the Metal Gear pack, the Pirates of the Caribbean pack, the Move pack and the Muppets premium pack, for the Paintinator, water, PlayStation Move compatibility and Attract-O-Gel respective. I believe at least the Paintinator and water have been included in the games since the GOTY edition of LBP1, which means purchase of the first two packs is now optional when playing LBP2, however, I assume the latter two are still required purchases if you want to take advantage of everything. So yeah, there's that.
I'm a terrible person.
And it's not even available on PC because we are a big bad bunch of pirates anyways. (official Ubisoft-guy response on the Steamforum).
You have to play the DS game The Fallen King to get any kind of resolution to the ongoing plot, since apparently Ubisoft have abandoned it now.
Look - I'll admit the games weren't fantastic, but they were still pretty good. C'mon Ubisoft, what's going on with the franchise? The fans demand to know!
That said, I'm looking forward to the Trine 2 DLC, since I'm confident it will be more of the game I like (since Trine 2 was an excellent continuation of what I loved about Trine.)
Bad DLC:
- anything that never goes on sale (Mass Effect 2 DLC)
- anything that provides less value per dollar than the main game did (ME2, Magicka)
Good DLC:
- Costume Quest (though I played it on PC, Gubbins on Ice would still have been a good separate purchase)
- Free DLC (Team Fortress 2, Left 4 Dead, Bastion, etc.)
Generally these days, I tend to wait for GOTY / Ultimate / Complete editions of games if I suspect there is going to be a lot of DLC. I'm waiting on Batman: Arkham City because I have no idea what type of DLC they're putting out, or if I'll want it, but there's definitely been a lot so far. Fallout New Vegas was another I was waiting for the Ultimate Edition for, and I might pick it up when I need a new game.
ttthhhhiiisssss
This. But I didn't see that happening for ME2. Or Worms Reloaded.
I bought the Magicka complete pack but they still keep adding new DLC packs constantly which I then have to buy or not....
also: waiting for a GOTY of Arkham City right now.
For multiplayer games, I don't like DLC that gives the buyer a clear advantage that cannot be gotten through normal gameplay. I think it's alright if DLC can be used as a sort of shortcut to get weapons quicker for the more impatient people, though.
like cutting the end out of a game and later selling it as DLC. Ubisoft & Bioware have done it or will do it. And I don't like it one bit.:mad:
(e.g. Fallout, Borderlands, Some Mass Effect DLC. You know, extra modes/mission packs/ side stories/ stuff thats not on the disc.... ect)
DLC made for the purposes to just making cheap and quick money is just wrong, and the people that make it should be hunted down and be forced to wear horse armour, and have all their clothes locked away with several seperate keys for each item that they have to pay to go and unlock it.
Hell we can go a little further, and ration how much stuff they can do in a day, and make them pay for "energy" if they want to do something else! XD
Bioware are heaving with hubris at the moment, not only do they talk down to their fanbase at every turn this weather, telling them to stop thinking they're a games producer and the like and very ropey jsutifications for day one DLC.
The justifications are mostly to do with how games are certified on consoles and how content is ordered and built, ignorant gamers like myself have to understand this.
Fuck you Bioware, fuck you 4,000 times over.
It's not my concern the struggles you have when making a game, it's not my concern what way you structure yourselves and it's certainly not my concern what your profit margins are and when you think is best to gouge the customers.
What is my concern however is when I get my game home only on launch day. To see a great big ad on the main menu telling me that for 4,000 non-transferable chucky cheese points, I can buy a character of legendary origins, of a race central to the plot of the entire Mass Effect saga and his assorted mission.
In my eyes that's incomplete, it's also goddamned cheeky to be doing it day one, the day that people turned over £40/$60 to you already. To ask me to care how you produced the content is borderline playing the victim. Stop it.
Also the content's not worth the asking price, I bought the CE however because i'm a consumer whore so I got it 'free'.
EDIT: I'm not anti-DLC or anti EA/Bioware mind. I thought Lair of the Shadow Broker for ME2 was excellent and a prime example of how DLC should be handled.
One day... one day... just you wait, Dredmor. I will come for you.
And your little dungeon, too! [insane cackle]
I thought this was Deus Ex 1 for Human Revolution for a second you jerk.
Have you tried messing around with the extra classes? Being a werediggle is far more useful than I expected.
I have tried a bunch of different classes. But by the time I get around to level nine, I've pretty much maxed out the aspects of the classes that I was using. Though, I'm pretty sure my current one could probably finish the original game. It was a pretty well built fighter type dude.