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Services Like The PSN Are Keeping Games Relevant For Longer.

I write this grudgingly. Almost as grudgingly as having to give away the last Ferrero Rocher in a pack. You see as I’m typing this, I could be playing the new Wipeout HD Fury pack. That makes me kind of furious. But at the very least my feelings have helped me conjure up a topic for this week’s opinator, namely; the scope of DLC is changing.

There’s no doubt the biggest leap forward video games have made this generation is in the downloadable medium. Playstation Network. XBOX Live Arcade. WiiWare. These on-demand services for heaps of video game content is a win-win-win for the consumer, platform holder and developer. The consumer is treated to a pile of content to extend their video game experiences on demand at a low cost. The platform holder is given an easy revenue platform. The developer is able to make their game feel relevant months after release. It’s brilliant, but it hasn’t always been treated well in the past.

Previously DLC has consisted of over priced nonsense. A couple of skins, a map pack or two, all retailing at a ludicrously extortionate price. Occasionally the “DLC” was a simple unlock code for content already on the disc. Developers like Criterion Games changed all that with Burnout Paradise. By providing a host of game changing content years after the game’s release, Burnout Paradise is virtually unrecognisable these days. With Big Surf Island providing an entire new playground for the experience, I think developers are really starting to see DLC in a different light.

Cue this week’s Wipeout HD Fury pack, an extended piece of content that not only adds the standard new vehicles, skins and modes, but also goes the extra mile and adds tracks and an entire single player campaign on top. There’s no cutting corners here, DLC is getting bigger and bigger.

Supposedly it’s an accolade you can plug towards something like Grand Theft Auto IV. Despite contractually not being available on the PS3, the content further emphasises my point by adding a full 10 hours on top of the initial single player experience. It adds new characters, new missions, even a different protagonist. Fallout 3 also pushes the boundaries of what was previously expected from DLC.

With so many cases following a leading example, we’re finding our initial retail purchases completed overhauled at a reasonable price. I for one think that’s excellent and it’s certainly something we should be thankful to the industry for. After all, who doesn’t want to get more out of their games?

“Twiggy” is an anonymous PushSquare columnist who has been spotted in three major cities across the globe. It’s rumoured he’s on the run from the British monarchy who accused him of treason.

Previous entries in the “Twiggy” range:

• Why Do People Promote A Single System Future?
  The Digital Download vs. The Peripheral, Is The Video Game Industry Moving In Separate Directions?
• The Ideas Presented In Mirror’s Edge & Red Faction Guerrilla Will End Up Everywhere
• The Importance Of Exposure Against An E3 Splash: Which Is More Important?
• Sony’s Wand Technology Sent Out A Fierce Message To Competitors Hours After They Comfortably Assumed Victory
• Sony’s First, Second & Third Party Alliances Will Ensure A Thrilling E3 2009 Showcase
• Playstation 3 Is Platformed Out With Bionic Commando & inFamous This Week, And It Reminds Me How Much I Love Super Mario 64
• In A Year Dominated By Blockbuster Sequels, Quantic Dream’s Heavy Rain Vision Could Be The Diamond In The Rough
• Here’s What I’d Request In The PSP Go! If I Had A Job At Sony & A Say In Such Things
• Does The Playstation 3 Need Motion-Control & How Will Sony Apply It?
• Why Did Guerilla’s Killzone 2 Force Me To Kill The More Interesting Good Guys? I Hate The ISA!
• Sony’s E3 2009 Press Conference Could Be The Biggest In History & A Turning Point In Software Perception
• A Playstation 3 Pricecut Could Cripple Sony So Stop Asking For It