DLC - worthwhile or just a cash cow?
Discussion
Many games have the option of paid-for DLC now. Personally, I think it's a bit of a rip off. What do others think?
Recent example is Battlefield 1. Core game cost around £40, but an expansion pack is £40 again. If the maps were already coded in and hidden, then paying another £40 is a bit of a rip off really.
So, really worth it? Or is it just cashing in on people who are willing to spend the money?
Recent example is Battlefield 1. Core game cost around £40, but an expansion pack is £40 again. If the maps were already coded in and hidden, then paying another £40 is a bit of a rip off really.
So, really worth it? Or is it just cashing in on people who are willing to spend the money?
Better that than paying £80 off the bat and then finding out you dont like the game - at least this way you can decide if you want the rest.
I have the basic BF1 (£35 actually) but havent yet bought the premium pass.
But i did for BF4 - i think in total i paid about £65, and clocked up ~400 hours (and still paying it), so i can live with 16p an hour!
I do laugh at the 'tards that pay extra for battlepacks and extra weapons early, rather than just playing the game and unlocking them in due course for free.
I have the basic BF1 (£35 actually) but havent yet bought the premium pass.
But i did for BF4 - i think in total i paid about £65, and clocked up ~400 hours (and still paying it), so i can live with 16p an hour!
I do laugh at the 'tards that pay extra for battlepacks and extra weapons early, rather than just playing the game and unlocking them in due course for free.
The Burnout Paradise ones were the best vfm/useful DLC I've ever experienced, the GTA ones would be fine if the grind to do without them wasn't so long as right now they look like a cash cow.
This is the most insane & came up on my steam recommendations as I've got other sims, I don't want to think about how much it would be without a discount
This is the most insane & came up on my steam recommendations as I've got other sims, I don't want to think about how much it would be without a discount
daddy cool said:
Better that than paying £80 off the bat and then finding out you dont like the game - at least this way you can decide if you want the rest.
I have the basic BF1 (£35 actually) but havent yet bought the premium pass.
But i did for BF4 - i think in total i paid about £65, and clocked up ~400 hours (and still paying it), so i can live with 16p an hour!
I do laugh at the 'tards that pay extra for battlepacks and extra weapons early, rather than just playing the game and unlocking them in due course for free.
as above,I have the basic BF1 (£35 actually) but havent yet bought the premium pass.
But i did for BF4 - i think in total i paid about £65, and clocked up ~400 hours (and still paying it), so i can live with 16p an hour!
I do laugh at the 'tards that pay extra for battlepacks and extra weapons early, rather than just playing the game and unlocking them in due course for free.
the Only BF Title i haven't paid premium for was Hardline. They have already released 2 or 3 of the expansions on it for free already!
It's mostly a piss take in my book.
It's not always easy to quantify to ‘amount’ of game you get, the shooters seem to be milking it to death, I seem to recall the Battlefield series want a monthly subscription to play online? COD £15 every other week for more maps which are basic to say the least.
My feeling is that they're making a game, then trimming off bits of it to sell later, rather than selling a full game and then bolting on new content later on.
The exception was the brilliant DLC add-ons for GTA4.
I don't have a problem with it if they are adding new stories to the game, as they are optional but could on their own be a game (I'm thinking Far Harbour in Fallout 4 as an example).
Paying for things like skins or other character customisation is stupid but each to their own, some like it and it doesn't really affect the game to not have them.
The big no-no for me is being able to pay to get ahead of others, unlocking features ahead of time, or in game cash, etc. Sadly, games publishers disagree.
Paying for things like skins or other character customisation is stupid but each to their own, some like it and it doesn't really affect the game to not have them.
The big no-no for me is being able to pay to get ahead of others, unlocking features ahead of time, or in game cash, etc. Sadly, games publishers disagree.
daddy cool said:
Better that than paying £80 off the bat and then finding out you dont like the game - at least this way you can decide if you want the rest.
I have the basic BF1 (£35 actually) but havent yet bought the premium pass.
But i did for BF4 - i think in total i paid about £65, and clocked up ~400 hours (and still paying it), so i can live with 16p an hour!
I do laugh at the 'tards that pay extra for battlepacks and extra weapons early, rather than just playing the game and unlocking them in due course for free.
Why should it be £80 for the full game though? I know this is due to the market, but wouldn't it be nice to have a full game for £40 that includes plenty of maps, rather than a game that includes 8 or so maps, with more at an extra cost?I have the basic BF1 (£35 actually) but havent yet bought the premium pass.
But i did for BF4 - i think in total i paid about £65, and clocked up ~400 hours (and still paying it), so i can live with 16p an hour!
I do laugh at the 'tards that pay extra for battlepacks and extra weapons early, rather than just playing the game and unlocking them in due course for free.
Wasn't there a version of COD that came out a few years ago with the maps locked away on the game disc? Someone had cracked the code and found the extras already on the disc. So, people were paying to unlock content they had already bought. Or was this a big sham?
funkyrobot said:
Why should it be £80 for the full game though? I know this is due to the market, but wouldn't it be nice to have a full game for £40 that includes plenty of maps, rather than a game that includes 8 or so maps, with more at an extra cost?
Yeah, but it would be nicer to have the full game for £30. Even nicer to have it for £20 (you see where I'm going with this). To be fair, its not pacman we're talking about here - gameplay niggles aside, you cant dispute that BF1 is an amazing achievement - graphically its spectacular, and I don't doubt it cost a fortune to make, so they have got to make a profit. Yeah, £80 all in is a lot - but do the maths. A cinema ticket is about £8 for 2 hours. Play BF1 for 20 hours and its cost the same per hour.funkyrobot said:
Wasn't there a version of COD that came out a few years ago with the maps locked away on the game disc? Someone had cracked the code and found the extras already on the disc. So, people were paying to unlock content they had already bought. Or was this a big sham?
Dunno about that - quite possible. I'll be honest - ive played a few COD games, but downloaded from torrents, so just the singleplayer campaigns, which of course is another form of piracy to the example you mentioned. But from time to time I do buy a game legitimately because I do want to support the industryP-Jay said:
I seem to recall the Battlefield series want a monthly subscription to play online?
Nope, not in my experience - every (PC) version of Battlefield ive owned has been free to play online after initial purchase - BF1942, BF2, BFBC2, BF3, BF4, and now BF1...The way people play games has changed. I used to complete (or at least attempt to complete) at least 10 to 15 games a year. I've only played 2 or three over the last year but I've put much more time into them. Combined with the ever increasing costs of developing AAA games it's not surprising that devs are making money through other means.
It's not like the idea of paid expansions is new either. PC games have been doing it for years.
I buy loads of DLC but it's normally for single player games. This gen I've had all the DLC for Fallout 4 and Dragon Age Inquisition for example.
I'd struggle to justify paying for map packs if I played those types of games but then I bought all the car packs for the Forza games on my 360 so who knows.
It's not like the idea of paid expansions is new either. PC games have been doing it for years.
I buy loads of DLC but it's normally for single player games. This gen I've had all the DLC for Fallout 4 and Dragon Age Inquisition for example.
I'd struggle to justify paying for map packs if I played those types of games but then I bought all the car packs for the Forza games on my 360 so who knows.
I'll admit I've been sucked into DLC with CS:GO, buying cases and the corresponding key to open it 
and have truly felt like I've been mugged in the process. Although I've had some success, spending £2.10 on a case and key and getting a knife worth £75. But on the whole, it's just money for old rope.
And don't get me started on Playstation Home....!!
and have truly felt like I've been mugged in the process. Although I've had some success, spending £2.10 on a case and key and getting a knife worth £75. But on the whole, it's just money for old rope.And don't get me started on Playstation Home....!!
mp3manager said:
I'll admit I've been sucked into DLC with CS:GO, buying cases and the corresponding key to open it and have truly felt like I've been mugged in the process. Although I've had some success, spending £2.10 on a case and key and getting a knife worth £75. But on the whole, it's just money for old rope.
And don't get me started on Playstation Home....!!
I tried CS:GO, but didn't rate it at all when compared to Source. In my opinion, it seems to be a backward step. and have truly felt like I've been mugged in the process. Although I've had some success, spending £2.10 on a case and key and getting a knife worth £75. But on the whole, it's just money for old rope.And don't get me started on Playstation Home....!!
AlexHat said:
IMO there is a difference between feeling the DLC is adding new content, or just adding content that should have been there from the start. I'm fine with the first, but won't pay for the latter as I feel it's just money grabbing.
I guess added content is ok if people are willing to pay for it.What bugs me though is content that is added that interferes with the base game. So, if you play with people that have the extra map packs, you miss out if you don't purchase them.
Dark Souls 2 had great DLC. A real challenge.
Dark Souls 3 DLC, whilst beautifully put together, was a little short to justify feeling good about the spend.
Bloodborne DLC was well worth it.
That is about my experience to date. Mixed bag but some games, you just NEED to get access to whatever DLC there is to get that bit more of the game.
Ah.. Alien Isolation DLC was great. Each one a challenge. Really enjoyed them. Worth the money? Who knows but I did enjoy each of the new missions and challenges.
RW
Dark Souls 3 DLC, whilst beautifully put together, was a little short to justify feeling good about the spend.
Bloodborne DLC was well worth it.
That is about my experience to date. Mixed bag but some games, you just NEED to get access to whatever DLC there is to get that bit more of the game.
Ah.. Alien Isolation DLC was great. Each one a challenge. Really enjoyed them. Worth the money? Who knows but I did enjoy each of the new missions and challenges.
RW
The battlefield dlc always seemed reasonable to me. BF4 had packs of 4 maps plus new vehicles/weapons at what, 11 quid a go, or 40-ish for the whole set of 5 packs. So less than 4 quid per map, closer to 3 if you get premium.
These games are a massive investment, of course they need to make money out of them. If it weren't for DLC they wouldn't be able to invest so much in creating the game engines in the first place.
And of course, you don't have to buy it.
These games are a massive investment, of course they need to make money out of them. If it weren't for DLC they wouldn't be able to invest so much in creating the game engines in the first place.
And of course, you don't have to buy it.
I don't mind the Battlefield 1 DLC that is coming as I feel the game itself was complete when new.
You've got the single player campaign that has been pretty great so far and one of the best versions of this I can remember for quite a while.
You've then got I think 9 maps. On top of that you've also got 5 different modes that are all different and cater to different tastes.
The DLC coming in the new year will be for 16 more maps, more game modes, new weapons and vehicles.
So basically the best part of a new game again.
You've got the single player campaign that has been pretty great so far and one of the best versions of this I can remember for quite a while.
You've then got I think 9 maps. On top of that you've also got 5 different modes that are all different and cater to different tastes.
The DLC coming in the new year will be for 16 more maps, more game modes, new weapons and vehicles.
So basically the best part of a new game again.
Gassing Station | Video Games | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff