DLC, how will it affect replay value years from now.

[TheLoneBeet]

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depends on the DLC, and how much/whats added,
like for you CoD/MW players, map packs add new areas to play in, master and generally piss other people off in, HOURS of extra game time right there.

while, say, a weapon/armor pack isn't gonna add much play time, that is, assuming the gear is even worth using in the first place

Good point. I suppose I should have established that I don't usually bother with the weapon/armor packs unless they're free. Personally I would never pay for something that in my opinion breaks the game.

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Digital Distribution only makes it easier to retrieve DLC if the servers are still up but at some point they will all be shut down. None will be up forever and I would say that in 10 years, you won't be able to get most of the DLC available today. Even DLC from big companies like BioWare or Bethesda may be unavailable. Hell for a long time Bethesda took away the PC DLC for Oblivion.

What if you can't play Oblivion from any other console than the 360 (not backward compatible) and Microsoft won't even let a 360 connect to Live anymore for security reasons because the 360 has been hacked to hell and back?

Very true. I suppose there's no way to guarantee that the content will be available in the future but depending on the DLC itself we can remain hopeful. Obviously it wouldn't be a big deal if they removed little things like weapon/armor/map-packs (because it's unlikely the servers will be running and if they are there wouldn't be many people playing) but if it's extra content towards singleplayer that affects the story or something like that (important in my opinion) it'd be a shame to lose it.

 

[TsunamiWombat]

So long as the internet exists, you'll be able to access any content from now new then classic titles. In the future, people will download "PC Emulators" to their brain-nodes and play Mass Effect 2, much to the anger of Nintendonysoft's legal team (who are also literal cyborg ninjas)

 

[KarlMonster]

The central question being hinted at is "Will future consoles be better at catering to me; both with my existing DLC, and future iterations of DLC?"

I'm not a Console Guy, but I'd be happy to offer a worthless opinion! It sounds to me like current console management of DLC is slapdash. Microsoft have a long tradition of that, including "fully backwards-compatible consoles". So long as they are able (somehow) to deliver content through a gateway (pay service), Microsoft is going to go with whatever works. And while it is working, they are going to insist to the players that their content delivery system is just fine.

Players could make noises about future rights, ownership and respect, but Microsoft can't hear over all the chump change they're collecting from you.

 

[Antari]

I was thinking about DLC and what a pain it is to keep up with it all. If I reinstall Dragon Age: Origins on my PC and I remember my account info then I can retrieve my DLC but what about my Oblivion DLC on the 360? What if I bought a new slim 360, would my DLC carry over and if so, how many hoops will I have to jump through to make it happen?

Now, with all that in mind, how about remembering and retrieving DLC 10 years from now?

Take your SNES Chrono Trigger cartridge and pop it into any Super Nintendo or even one of those knock off DUO machines and you can play the full game. No account info needed, no long term server support from Square or Nintendo, etc... Compare that with modern day games.

Is DLC really worth all the hassle, now and in the future?

Its good to see someone is finally spotting this. DLC overall once the game gets past about 10 years old will absolutely murder a game's replay. Especially if the game company hasn't come up with a GOTY edition with all the DLC included. Most companies never realized when they created this disaster that they wouldn't want to continue to pay for these services long after the game is no longer making money. I still play old games out of the 80's, Why? Well one I'm a bit nuts, and two the ENTIRE game is there. And in most DOS cases doesn't even need patches.

 

[Lunar Templar]

Snip.

Spoiler: Click to read.

depends on the DLC, and how much/whats added,
like for you CoD/MW players, map packs add new areas to play in, master and generally piss other people off in, HOURS of extra game time right there.

while, say, a weapon/armor pack isn't gonna add much play time, that is, assuming the gear is even worth using in the first place

Good point. I suppose I should have established that I don't usually bother with the weapon/armor packs unless they're free. Personally I would never pay for something that in my opinion breaks the game.

i prefer weapon/armor packs that a an improvement over what you get normally get, but not game breaking on their own
IE: IMO see the Dawn of War 2: Retribution, Last Stand Mode gear packs, good but not game breaking, well on their own >.> think i found a pretty game breaking set up last night

anyway, i tend to avoid weapon/armor packs save for the above, for the above reason,(balanced correctly) due solely to there's no way to tell if its junk or game breaking

 

[Epona]

I was thinking about DLC and what a pain it is to keep up with it all. If I reinstall Dragon Age: Origins on my PC and I remember my account info then I can retrieve my DLC but what about my Oblivion DLC on the 360? What if I bought a new slim 360, would my DLC carry over and if so, how many hoops will I have to jump through to make it happen?

Now, with all that in mind, how about remembering and retrieving DLC 10 years from now?

Take your SNES Chrono Trigger cartridge and pop it into any Super Nintendo or even one of those knock off DUO machines and you can play the full game. No account info needed, no long term server support from Square or Nintendo, etc... Compare that with modern day games.

Is DLC really worth all the hassle, now and in the future?

Its good to see someone is finally spotting this. DLC overall once the game gets past about 10 years old will absolutely murder a game's replay. Especially if the game company hasn't come up with a GOTY edition with all the DLC included. Most companies never realized when they created this disaster that they wouldn't want to continue to pay for these services long after the game is no longer making money. I still play old games out of the 80's, Why? Well one I'm a bit nuts, and two the ENTIRE game is there. And in most DOS cases doesn't even need patches.

Exactly. I won't even play Oblivion without the Batllehorn Castle DLC. What happens when it's not available? It won't be the end of the world but still not the full game.

It's like going back to play Chrono Trigger today and some of the side quests being absent.

Once a person has played a game with the DLC, that DLC becomes a part of the game. They are essentially breaking up games into pieces and getting all the pieces back together in the future will be a real pain.