Which makes all this additional content great in theory. If the main game is too thin on material to justify the price-tag, more modes, maps, heroes and villains, and extra “Star Cards” is exactly what Star Wars: Battlefront needs. (Though I question whether the game ever needed Star Cards to begin with…)
At the same time, expecting gamers to dish out over $110 just to get enough content to make the game worth its $60 price-tag in the first place is pretty ridiculous. And I don’t even buy the argument that DLC is always cut from the main game, or that modern games are never worth the sticker price. Modern games often are, and DLC is often a reasonable way to generate revenue. But in this instance, especially with no single-player campaign, I can only recommend players wait for a Game of the Year edition with a hefty price drop.
I agree with many others who have written high praise for the game’s visuals and sound design. It’s an extraordinary looking game, and you do feel very much in the thick of a Star Wars battle while playing. But additional multiplayer content for a game that already feels so thin should come at a very different price point. I’d argue it should come free—but then again, I think all new maps in multiplayer games, from Call of Duty to Star Wars: Battlefront, should be free.
That’s not because I think developers and publishers ought to give all DLC away. For actual expansions, charging a fee makes sense. Even for smaller bits of content, I can see charging small amounts of money. But new maps and game modes? Charging for these simply splinters the player base, diminishing the game for everyone and weakening its community.
If EA wants to make DLC for Star Wars: Battlefront they should consider a single-player expansion. I could see paying for that. Even having micro-transactions for aesthetic items, buffs, and silly space hats makes more sense than a season pass filled with maps. More content can help keep a game’s player base engaged and extend the lifespan of a game, but in this case it’s just a bad idea that’s not worth the price to begin with, no matter how good the game looks and sounds. No matter how strong my nostalgia for this brand may be.
Look for our review coverage of Star Wars: Battlefront over the next week or so. Star Wars: Battlefront launches Tuesday, November 17th.
. Mittlerweile finanzieren auch die Blockbuster "kleinere" Spiele, die so wohl kaum Gewinne machen würden. Die Halbwertszeit gibt es ja bei COD und Co. kaum. Die kosten fast immer sehr viel, das mussten sich die Marken aber auch über Jahre aufbauen. Ist ja bei Nintendo genauso, da bekommt man die AAA-Spiele auch nirgends für 10 Euro in der Pyramide oder bei E-Bay.
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