Downloadable Content for Console/PC RPGs...

[deceiver]

- Does the DLC for these RPGs actually interest you?

Generally, yes. Only if I haven't finished the game or started it yet. It was the case for Fallout 3. The DLCs started coming out a bit after I started playing it, so they integrated seamlessly to the experience, so it was pretty fun playing through them. Even after finishing the game and learning about Point Lookout and Zeta, because of the quality of the DLCs before I continued my game to finish them. As for ME2 and Dragon Age with their free DLC on purchase, why not? It's free I downloaded and played them. I finished ME2 and I saw that there is new DLC coming out with vehicular gameplay, but I'm done with the game already...so I'll most likely play through that only on my second playthrough at some point. As for Dragon Age, I have it and bought its DLC, but haven't gotten to playing it yet (its length is kinda intimidating), but I bought all the DLC so far so it'll be a pretty seamless experience once I play it.

- Would new DLC bring you back to play the game if you beat it already or otherwise stopped playing it?

Like I said, not really, if it comes out while I'm playing it and or haven't started it yet, I'll buy it. If I've already finished, not really.

- How long after a game releases would you still be interested in DLC?

6 months I guess? Maybe a bit less.

- Have you/do you buy the expansion packs to RPGs? How long after the original game releases would you want a major expansion pack to be released?

There don't seem to be many expansion packs for RPGs these days, at least, not the ones that I've played (I don't consider the Fallout 3 DLC expansions, they're just DLC to me). The only one that comes to mind as of late is the upcoming Dragon Age one, but I won't buy that until the finish the first game hehe.

[Serenius]

I'm doing some research on downloadable content & expansion packs for PC/console RPGs like Fallout 3, Mass Effect 1&2, Dragon Age, Oblivion, etc. A lot of DLC is becoming free at launch if you purchase a new copy of the game, such as what EA has done with Dragon Age and Mass Effect 2. Of course, not all RPG DLC is free, and for sure major expansion packs sold at retail are not free.

A few questions. If you play RPGs feel free to answer as much or as little as you want:

- Does the DLC for these RPGs actually interest you?

- Would new DLC bring you back to play the game if you beat it already or otherwise stopped playing it?

- How long after a game releases would you still be interested in DLC?

- Have you/do you buy the expansion packs to RPGs? How long after the original game releases would you want a major expansion pack to be released?

Thanks!

- After being exposed to DLC in Dragon Age and Fallout 3, I'm highly skeptical that I will ever purchase any DLC again outside of Rock Band. Standalone DLC content releases have an abysmal game time:money paid ratio for my liking. I was 100% cool paying $60 for Fallout 3 and Dragon Age. Each game got at least 80-100 hours of entertainment for the money spent, making it a solid investment. I bought each of the first three FO3 DLC releases as soon as they came out (Operation Anchorage, The Pitt, and Broken Steel) simply because I was craving more. Same with the Soldier's Peak release on Dragon Age. Then 4-6 hours later I was done, and really felt cheated out of the $10-12 spent (or in the case of Soldier's Peak, 45 minutes). If the Shale DLC content hadn't been included with the game, I would have been outraged at paying for it upon completion.

Bundle all the DLC together, and knock about 25% off the price, and that seems worthwhile. I feel 10 hours of gameplay per $10 spent is a fair ratio. Any less than that is a rip off. I'd rather wait for the GOTY edition as a prior poster mentioned versus ever going the route of DLC again.

- Probably not anymore, unless it was a full blown expansion pack with a significant amount of play time provided.

- Again, depends on the quality and length of the content.

- I would pick up an expansion pack regardless of how long it was after release as long as the quality and length of the content was worthwhile. Thankfully, I know to review online reviews before dropping any more money on DLC.

[Jetsetlemming]

i think another point to be made is about the nature of the payment. By nature the smaller DLCs are (to me at least) a matter of impulsive purchases, so permitting easy payment methods should interest your own customers Jeremy. I'm thinking a publisher based system that spans all their game, where you sign up a bit like you would with Xbox Live or PSN, and you would withdraw straight from money you deposited there either via credits or real money. I think with these transactions, a good part of the lost sales come when you need to enter your credit card details and add additional points or money to your account. It gives customers a minute to think about it again, or they have to get up and find their card etc etc.

I think this is something that really helps along the deals and small games on Steam, when a game's like $5 or under (the price last christmas I bought Alien Shooter Reloaded, Bioshock, and over a dozen other really good games), it suddenly becomes not a judgement of money vs value, but effort vs value, and with Steam the effort to get a game is like 30 seconds of clicking "next" in the purchase process if you've already gone through it before and entered your info. This also feels fairer, not to mention being faster, than having to buy fake money in big chunks and then spending those on the actual products I want. I'm fishy about the entire idea of those, because I'm not paying the developer (or at least, I don't feel like I'm paying the developer), I'm paying MS or Nintendo and trusting them to pass it along. I know that with any sort of payment system I'm doing that, but when I'm putting my money down straight on the game I want, that feels more direct and honest. I don't get that feel good feeling of "I'm helping a developer I like make more stuff I like" when I'm buying fake money and then giving them that fake money.

[Izuno]

Great new responses. Thanks.

Interesting that on Xbox 360 dealing with preset purchase quantities of MS points is a bit of a deterrent from buying DLC (or anything else) on XBL. But if we can get past that, the next issue is quantity of game value for the dollar.

Would other people agree that for RPG DLC/expansions that cost $10, you really need at least 10 hours of new gameplay at hopefully the same quality as the original game? Would you pay $5 for 4 to 6 hours of new gameplay (assuming you were still interested in the game etc.)? Another way to ask this is how much content does DLC need to have to be worth $10?

[st0lve]

I hate to buy DLC. I do buy it for games that I play a lot (Skate 2 comes into my mind). I haven't gotten it for Borderlands mainly because my character got "fucked" when I played online and people just rushed for like 100 missions so I lost a huge chunk of the game and put it to rest. I do want to try out the DLC for Borderlands, but I won't buy it before I finish the main story. So in a timeline, I'd say that DLC should be released after the average time being spent on the main quest\story. Release it too early and people might not buy it, release it too late and people have forgotten how fun your game is.

I don't like MS points because they sell them by the 1000s, while games are variations of 400, 800, 1200 etc. I always end up with some retarded 385 points, and I want a DLC that is 400 points, oh well, I guess I have to buy another 1000, 2000 or 5000 points just to get those dumb 15 points which is what I really need. I don't understand why full games (Games on demand) is a proper currency, while the DLC\etc. uses MS points, it's a hassle.

[Furyo]

The problem with the cost of the DLC is that it really hasn't got much to do with customer perception. Microsoft and Sony will demand a certain price in most cases, making your plans completely random. That's because when speaking DLC with them, all they care about is the weight of your additional content in Gb, and not the number of hours it includes. Brand power is a factor in as well of course

As far as your question goes, I'd say that the best approach may be to quantify it in percentage terms of the total length of the original game, and again the nature of the DLC?

Precisely for an RPG, typically long games, a 30 hours game that gets a 2 hours extension for 10 bucks may not be worth it (1/15th extra game length for 1/6th the original price tag). But a 5 hours extension for 5 dollars is a lot more bang for your buck (1/6th extra game length for 1/12th the original price tag)

Again, depends on the nature of the DLC. If it's extra content that radically changes the entire experience and is accessible at any time (think Joker specific levels in Batman, that act as a mini prequel to the game), then every fan will want to experience it and you can charge a little extra. If your DLC typically caters to a very small niche of your entire game market, pricing should change to reflect that.

[Jetsetlemming]

I don't care about length so much as if it's interesting content. I've never beaten the two NWN1 expansions, Shadows of Undrentide and Hordes of the Underdark, and I hear those are pretty substantially sized. I just got them so I could play the custom modules that required them. Then, with NWN2, you have Mask of the Betrayer and everyone recommends that even over the normal game.