One of the most revolutionary developments of this generation has been the widespread integration of downloadable content. DLC has made it so that a finished game never necessarily needs to end. It makes it possible for a troubled game to correct its errors and most of all for game developers to fatten their purses by selling us imaginary horse armor. Not all DLC is worth it, but often it is and truth be told, we’d be better off if more games would take the time to integrate it. Here’s a few that should.
God of War III
The best moments of God of War III were easily some of the most titanic ever presented in action game. Whether you were running along the back of a titan a thousand times your size or taking down the gods of Greek mythology one by one, the pay off for its various climaxes were huge. That said, they could also be a bit few and far between. At best, the pacing of God of War III was uneven, weighing more heavily at the beginning than the end. After all, once you’ve popped Poseidon’s eyes with your fingers, it’s hard to go back to killing just your standard grunts. That’s why we think the game has real potential for fantastic DLC. Even with all the mythological figures Kratos has killed over the years, there are still a lot of them ripe for the eviscerating. Why not take some of these and build DLC levels around them? They wouldn’t need to be tied into the story; the continued spectacle that is Kratos would be enough for us.
Heavenly Sword
It might seem a bit late in the game to be putting out DLC for a game that bombed back in 2006, but honestly if there’s a time for Heavenly Sword to be salvaged at all, it might be now. Heavenly Sword was a really well crafted title. Its combat was fast-paced and fun, its visuals were gorgeous, and its voice acting performances were some of, if not the best, to ever grace a video game. That said, it was just too short. We’re not talking fanboy nitpicking short. We’re speaking in relation to the six hours total for the campaign completion and there’s nothing else to do; notta, nil to none even! Years later, the price of Heavenly Sword has dived to more reasonable levels and all it needs is more content. Even creating cliché challenge rooms would make it a hundred times better.
Final Fantasy XIII
There hasn’t been a Final Fantasy as divisive as this since Final Fantasy VIII. While some people have hailed it as a huge step forward for the franchise as a whole, others have lambasted it as a game that is utterly devoid of life. For the first 15 hours or so, you’re confined to narrow corridors with little or nothing to interact with. It reduces the gamer to the level of a five-year-old on a road trip, constantly asking “Are we there yet?” It opened up more toward the end, but this was not enough for many fans. Luckily we live in an age where the flaws of a game aren’t necessarily permanent. Since we probably can’t count on any of the next major Final Fantasy’s being released even remotely on time, maybe Square Enix could give Final Fantasy XIII fans a bit more to chew on. It could take a ton of labor to integrate, but the game would be better if the world of Cocoon were a bit more like an actual world and less like a series of brightly colored hallways.
Dead Space
This may seem an odd pick considering that everyone is currently revving up for Dead Space 2, but frankly this game needed better DLC. At best, there were a couple new costumes up for grabs and paying for virtual clothes never rubs fans the right way. When the developers had literally one of the best survival-horror games in recent memory on their hands, why would they aim so low? Well, even with the sequel on the way we still think there’s some room to expand on the original. A few new levels, a challenge mode, or even a short new campaign would be some nice additions that might even help get us even more excited for the sequel. So when you’re thinking about this one and wondering “why,” ask yourself rather, “why not?”
Heavy Rain
Heavy Rain isn’t void of DLC but with the major planned installments put on an indefinite pause, it’s likely that what comes with the game is all we’re every going to get. The shame of this is that a lot of what has already been delivered in the retail release was lame. Don’t get us wrong, Heavy Rain had it’s moments of real suspense, but coming out of it, the thing that tends to remain most prominent are the various gaping plot holes that were scattered throughout the game. For a game entirely about story, the writing was lackluster. This is something that could be partially corrected by releasing well-written DLC that makes proper use of Heavy Rain’s interesting mechanics, but alas, it seems that will never be.
Demon’s Souls
Demon’s Souls was Atlus’ and From Software’s most successful release ever, and while other recent games such as 3D Dot Game Heroes have been great, we can safely say that we’d love to see Demon’s Souls paid a bit more attention. A new dungeon or two. Another new, insane difficulty level where you’re forced to play with one hand tied behind your back? Honestly, we’d spring for anything. This game was probably the most delightful surprise of 2009. That it succeeded (albeit not on a blockbuster scale) is a testament to the fact that niche games can be viable ventures and the developers would be doing it a great service by expanding on an already awesome experience.
Metro 2033
Metro 2033 was a flawed game. It was buggy, endowed with poor AI and overall just an inconsistent gameplay. While a patch could certainly deal with many of these problems, it doesn’t do anything to solve our desire for more of Metro 2033. For all its problems, Metro 2033 had a lot of great ideas, and a great dark atmosphere fleshed out by a lot of small details. Having to use a flashlight to examine a clip board may seem trivial, but it actually goes a long way to personify the world. In short, we want more of this world that makes better use of Metro 2033’s unique elements.
Bayonetta
What’s better than a sexy witch that fights angels and gets naked whenever she performs a special attack? How about more of said sexy witch? Partial nudity aside, Bayonetta was an intense action game that took all the over the top insanity of games like Ninja Gaiden and Devil May Cry and upped the ante. It was utter nonsense, but the sort of nonsense that most gamers can wholeheartedly get behind. And yet, despite critical and retail success the game has gotten zilch when it’s come to DLC. What gives? Does Sega and Platinum Games not like money? Because chances are if they were to give us a bit more meat to mow down on that more than a few gamers would be lining up for another bite of Bayonetta.
Darksiders
If Kratos and Zelda had a baby, well, chances are it wouldn’t be consensual… That bit of nastiness aside, if the two franchises were to procreate, you’d get Darksiders. Mixing the brutal violence of God of War with the open world, dungeons and puzzle solving of The Legend of Zelda Darksiders struck a good chord with fans of both franchises. While a sequel is currently in the works, wouldn’t it be cool if in the mean time they’d throw us a few extra dungeons to occupy our time? Darksiders may not have been the most original game, but that doesn’t mean we don’t want more.
Metal Gear Solid 4
Metal Gear Solid 4 was an incredible title, managing not just to entertain but also to tie the franchise’s insanely convoluted story up into a neat little bow, for the most part any ways. That said, it was a bit lacking in one area: content. Outside of the main game, there wasn’t much to do. Sure, there was Metal Gear Online, but honestly, what we wanted were more opportunities to dink around with the single-player game. Namely, we wanted VR missions. Metal Gear Solid had them. Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3 both received them when their special editions were released; so why not Metal Gear Solid 4? Yes, it’s been several years since the game first launched, but who cares? Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker demonstrated how valuable an excess of content can be. Why not bring that to a game that is better in every possible way, shape and form?
Every Sports Game Ever Made
The yearly release schedule; it is the bane of gamers everywhere. At its worst, it results in subpar games; and at its best, it means that to stay current, gamers will need to shell out an additional $50-60 each year for a game that is barely better than the one that came before. No genre of is guiltier of this practice than sports games. Almost every year you can count on the majority of the sports franchises releasing a “new” title earmarked by whatever year it represents. Perhaps in previous generations when updating rosters and such actually required a new release this was justifiable; but with DLC and patches an established presence on almost every platform, there is no longer any reason or excuse to continue the once a year schedule. That developers and publishers still do so is tantamount to robbery. That said, gamers haven’t exactly given them much of a reason to stop. The big sports games still sell well enough and one can hardly blame a company for putting out a product people are willing to buy. In other words, stop buying these games people! Save your money and demand DLC.
