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Sunday, July 29, 2012

The Death of Video Games: Part 1 - DLC

As the title suggests, this is part one of a series that details some of the flaws in mainstream gaming today. As long as there will be flaws, there will be articles.

Today, I discuss Downloadable Content, or DLC for short. Unless you have been under a rock for this whole console generation, this should ring a bell, whether or not you've purchased some. The idea behind DLC is to give customers more game content, such as extra multiplayer maps, more campaigns, different costumes, etc. I've personally bought some DLC, I'm not going to lie. What's wrong with giving players another reason to play your game? Well, in theory, nothing; In practice however, things have gone awry.

DLC seems to have come from developers not having enough time to implement certain features and content in the game before it's release date. That's what we are told at least. The unfortunate part about DLC is that it's become commonplace. Go to any Gamestop, and watch the advertisements for new games. I guarantee you will see maybe one that doesn't include it. I remember a time where DLC wasn't necessary to enjoy a game for long periods of time. Now all they seem to do is wave pretty pictures in our face while the slide their hands into our wallets, and we keep letting them do it. Now, there a couple different types of DLC you should keep your eyes out for:
  1. On Disk 
  2. Retailer Exclusive 
  3. "Season Pass" 
On Disk DLC has got to be one of the hottest subjects at the moment, and there is a reason for it. If the name didn't give it away, On Disk DLC is not actual DLC, but is a "key" that is bought that will unlock content that can be found on the disk to begin with, it just isn't accessible. Why should we have to pay for content that was already on the disk we just purchased? Better yet, if the content was already finished, why not just implement it into the game? Capcom was a big offender in the On Disk DLC. For instance, with their release of Street Fighter X Tekken, 12 characters were locked on the console disk until the PSVita version came out months later. Capcom has stated they are re-evaluation their DLC policy, but we have to wait to see what they end up doing. Others have offended, but you get my point. It's dumb.

Capcom X Customers. FIGHT!

Retailer Exclusive DLC is an interesting marketing trick. Depending on where you buy your game, you will receive a different set of DLC whenever it is available, usually for free. I believe it was Batman: Arkham City that had a butt-load of exclusive content, such as; early access to the Robin DLC if you pre-order with Best Buy, or the "Sinestro Corps" costume that you could only get by purchasing the extended edition of The Green Lantern movie, to name a few. There is an upside to this, i guess you could call it. The "exclusive" DLC usually finds itself available to all users after a short period of time, but does that really make it any better?

He needs to pay for these suits somehow.

The last major player in the DLC pack is the "Season Pass". You can purchase on of these passes, and it will give you access to all DLC, present and future, for a certain time period (depending on how much DLC they plan to release. This one is odd, to me at least, because you are being told, upfront, that this much DLC will be released. Two examples of this are Uncharted 3 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. Uncharted 3 offered all of its planned DLC at launch, for a discounted price, of course. CoD offers its DLC either individually, or with a yearly subscription.

"This ring will do nicely for all the extra work I put in."

It's not the DLC that I hate, really; It's how everything is marketed and sold. They know all too well they make more money off of this extra content, and sometimes it's like they aren't even trying to hide that fact. I didn't even mention the outrageous prices some publishes offer their content at. CoD: Modern Warfare 2 sold its DLC packs, which usually contained only 4 multiplayer maps (two of which were usually remakes of old maps) for $15, 1/4 of the original games price. 

It's really up to you on how you feel about DLC, but if you ask me, we shouldn't be treated like lambs being led to slaughter. It's hard to appreciate your product if you don't appreciate it either. 

I want apologize for the amount for times I wrote DLC (now at 26), and I hope you will forgive me. Leave your comments, concerns, and suggestions for future topics in the comment section below, and as always, thanks for reading, stay tuned, and stay sweet! :)



DLC (27 :D)

4 comments:

  1. Cool post man! You'd probably like this game: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esDL8y5XeHM

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    1. Thanks! :)
      lol, that looks awesome. I've heard of it before, or at least heard of something like it.

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  2. Good points bro. Reminds me of the Mass Effect 3 Ending DLC they released some time ago to appease fans over the ridiculous endings they showed

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    1. I never really got into Mass Effect, so I don't know what all went down, but that might be a fair comparison. I don't know if they charged for that DLC, though.

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