When Ubisoft released details about its upcoming Assassin's Creed 2 DLC and I suggested that it was content that had merely yanked out of the original game, I was told off for being presumptuous. Well, guess what -- the upcoming Assassin's Creed 2 DLC is content that was merely yanked out of the original game.
I win.
"I felt that, 'Okay, there were too many things to do and to finish.' So we said, 'Okay, let's take a portion of the game that was planned and we'll give it in DLC.' We'll remove some stress to the team while giving more to fans and people who like Assassin's Creed," justifies Ubisoft Montreal's Patrice Desilets in an interview with Kotaku. "I think we gave them so much content that they cannot say that we owe them, that we didn't give them a lot for their sixty bucks."
I don't think cramming a game full of rooftop races and identical "beat up this guy" missions is content, exactly, but whatever. Do you agree with Desilets? Was Assassin's Creed 2 full of so much brilliance that the studio was justified in locking out content, or is Ubisoft just trying to justify the same tactics employed by DLC whores like Namco Bandai?
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
11:40 AM on 12.22.2009
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Your AC2 trolling skillz are OVER 9000!!!
But i respect yo opinion, even tho AC2 is my GOTY 2009!
Katamari, a 5 hour 100% game: thats a different story.
That's not saying I WANT it to be 60 bucks.... I just want to complete the story.
And hell, I'll pay 20 bucks for a way to replay old missions with new equipment.
And yet Valve keeps giving content away for free for there games (ala Team fortress 2)
Uh, if you remove it, then sell it back, you aren't giving anyone anything. In fact you are taking it away.
That said, love the game, but unsure if I love it enough to go back for DLC.
b) It's a complete story as is. 20 hours of brilliance!
c) Optional. If you don't like it, don't pay. Easy really.
d) If removing those levels meant that the development team had more time to polish the rest of the game, without damaging the overall integrity of the game, I see no problem with it. As I said above, the game is a finished, complete story as is. You're not missing out vital parts of the narrative.
e) Jim's trolling of AC2 is getting rather annoying.
I'm a consumer whore and love the Assassin's Creed universe, so I'll buy the DLC, but I'm exceedingly dissatisfied with being sold content that was intended for the final product to begin with. I think I'll be buying Ubisoft games used or after a price drop from here on.
I would not be surprised if they do something similar with Splinter Cell DLC.
Oh right, you're a greed company who loves to use money as wankfodder. Never mind.
I think it's absolute bullshit they try and tell me they put enough content in when that's such a subjective thing. Does content = time played? Well fuck, why not just make the game super tedious and cycle through fed ex quests and the like?
OH WAIT, A LITTLE TOO CLOSE TO HOME WITH THAT LAST COMMENT UBISOFT ASSASSINS CREED UBISOFT.
And people wonder why we love Valve?...
@Overcrowd: I thought people loved Valve because they don't take three years to make a single HL2 episode in favor of pumping out two zombie shooters with no story... oh, wait...
If there was no DLC, you'd have AC2 and that's it. DLC gives the developpers a chance to expend the universe they create.
Someone mentionned Valve and Criterion. I'm pretty sure Valve is making more than enough money with Steam to afford releasing free DLC, and I'm pretty sure Criterion doesnt need 20 testers and a 50+ team to offer some new cars and a new island.
If you don't want it, don't buy it. That's kind of the point.
[font=18]F.U.C.K Y.O.U[/font]
lv.99? buy the ability to grind that high.
minigames? buy the right to play them all.
80 hour story? haha, but the add-ons to experience the complete story.
what ever happened to giving the consumer the full product? i don't buy a half eaten apple at full price. don't buy a new car without doors for full price. i don't buy half a carton of eggs for full price.
The Stone Prisoner costs $15; it is not free.
BIAS MUCH!? <3
I don't mind if a dev aimed high, then realized it bit off a bit too much, and had to scale down. If that is the case, that's okay, because it allows devs to be a bit ambitious. However, if it turned out the project was costing more than expected, then a dev pulled out content just to sell as DLC to recoup some of that, then that is no good.
Yes "The Stone Prisoner" is free if you buy a new copy of the game, I have it. A single use code to download it is in every box, its a measure to try and reduce the ammount of trade-in's of the game, because if you were to buy it secondhand THEN you would have to pay $15 if you wanted shale.