For those of you that don’t know, DLC is an initialism for ‘Downloadable Content’. On the face of it, DLC is a great idea. Who doesn’t relish the thought of an extra slice of that cake you enjoyed so much? There’s a charge involved of course, but hey, you’re getting an extra slice of cake so no harm no foul right? Back in the good old days this was indeed the case and everyone rejoiced and got fat on cake.

The cake is a lie.Portal

Move on a few years and things have changed a little. These days there is no extra slice. Instead, what you get is the original cake with some kind of “Cake Chastity Belt”™ around a slice you already bought. For (often more than) a few extra hard earned £’s, you can buy the key, allowing you to both have you cake and eat it, as it were.

It’s called ‘downloadable’ content for a reason, its supposed to be downloadable. The reason it’s supposed to be downloadable is because it’s what the developers traditionally worked on after the game has gone gold and been shipped off to be written to disc by the publishers. Coming pre-installed on the disc implies that you had additional resources that could have been working on the game. So you’re making a Harry Potter game, it’s going to span all 7 books? That’s amazing I’m really looking forward to it. You’ve just started pre-production, but you’re announcing day one DLC. OK, seems a little strange, but I guess not everyones interested in what the Dursleys were up to whilst Harry was at Hogwarts. Still, could be kind of cool, maybe I’ll check it out if I enjoy the game. What’s that? Oh that’s not the plans for the DLC. The DLC will be the ability to use a Wand? With a second planned to add Broomsticks?

It would be bad enough if this was a planned addition for after release, but to include it on the disc from day one. That’s not DLC. It’s part of the game. You’re just being money grabbing pricks.

*grumble*, *grumble*