Capcom explains Resident Evil 5 Versus cost, but will you listen?

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Home Resident Evil

11:30 AM on 03.13.2009, Nick Chester

60 comments | 9828 views

Capcom explains Resident Evil 5 Versus cost, but will you listen? photo

#Capcom #PS3 #Resident Evil #Xbox 360

Yesterday, Capcom officially revealed what some of us had already known -- there are multiplayer versus modes for Resident Evil 5. The catch? They're not on the disc, but instead are being offered as downloadable content for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, for 400 MS Points and $4.99 respectively.

As with any DLC announced, especially one so close to a release (or in this case, before), people raised a few eyebrows. In a statement to MSXbox World, Capcom explains the decision to price the content.

"Although Versus mode makes use of the assets that exist in the game, the functionality is not currently in the game and is above and beyond the initial scope of Resident Evil 5," the publisher said. "We have never included a versus mode in Resident Evil before, and as well as the costs of development of the feature, there's also additional bandwidth costs associated with it."

As gamers, are you happy with this response? Do you accept the cost of the additional modes, or do you firmly believe they should have (and could have) been included out of the box? And do you think Resident Evil 5 versus will even "work"?

We're at the Dtoid offices this morning frantically putting together our HD Resident Evil 5 video review; the text is like, totally done, man. So check back later this afternoon for that thing we speak of.

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next 50 comments

57 comments | showing # 1 to 50

ian_esq

FUCK THAT SHIT.

This shit was planned on day 1.

Holyetheline

I'll buy it and then I guess I'll also be sucking Capcom's dick...

silvain

Does the explanation point mean that snake is playable in vs?!?

Also, companies like money. They think they can get away with this. This isn't news, and the justification is even dumber. They planned this, and that's fine.

JoeyBuckets

If the DLC is about 15k or there abouts, we are downloading a simple unlock key for the disc. That would be BULLSHIT. However, if it is crap they couldn't fit on the disc (feasible as we don't have a fancy schmancy blu ray Talladega Nights! disc) then I am kind of ok with that. What I am not OK with is that I paid 95 dollars (with tax) on the limited Edition version of this game, and it didn't include some type of card to get that shit for free. C'mon Capcom, you would have sold more Limited Editions at that pricepoint with that simple inclusion...

killatia

It should have already been on the disk but i don't believe capcom planned this stunt on day 1.

loki d20

It's BS.

That's like the guys making inFamous charging us more for the Statis Shield ability, or whatever it's called, that they recently added into the game. It may not have been there on day one, but they knew that it would add more gameplay elements to the game and added it in.

If you're going to nickle and dime us for all of the abilities in the game, then why don't you just make a list of all of the abilities, items, and gameplay modes and let us grocery shop the game we want?

And bandwidth costs? Seriously, that's the best they could come up with considering the only graphics we'll be downloading are those of Jill Valentine or other models who aren't already on the disc for use in the multiplayer modes.

Mxyzptlk

People will complain, then about 95% of them will go out and buy it anyway.

CMcCon342

If it comes out and people seem to like it, I'll pay $5. Yes, it's annoying, but it's also $5! Bring lunch to work one extra day that week, it's better for you anyway. Yeah, I'm talking to you fatty...

ZombiePlatypus

Seems like it could and definitely should be on the disc. That said, I have zero interest in the versus mode and won't be buying it. It doesn't sound that appealing at all...

BlackFreefall

You have to pay more to play more. This is a story driven action shooting game. Not your Halo/Gears of War running/shooting type of game.

If Capcom is charging you for addtional modes in Street Fightever IV, then it is a problem as we come to expect such entities to be included in a fighting game.

PappaDukes

I might buy it. Haven't really decided yet. Right now, I am more concerned about actually getting the game first. Come on you bastard clock! Become 5 o'clock right now!!!

icarus

"Although Versus mode makes use of the assets that exist in the game, the functionality is not currently in the game and is above and beyond the initial scope of Resident Evil 5," the publisher said.�

It all depends on how you define that scope. Obviously, multiplayer can be in the scope of RE5 since you are including it later on. You can�t justify this by saying it is beyond the scope of the game, and then doing it later thereby putting it within the scope of the game. The argument is more absurd when you consider that the release of the DLC is close to that of the actual game. It could have been in the scope of the initial game, Capcom simply chose to have it not be.

"We have never included a versus mode in Resident Evil before��

So? There are lots of games which add new game modes (Horde mode in Gear 2 comes to mind), but it doesn�t you are somehow justified charging more to have access to that mode.

��and as well as the costs of development of the feature��

As stated earlier, ��versus mode makes use of the assets that exist in the game...�. I can�t imagine that the development costs justify charging an additional $5 when the game costs $60. It couldn't have been terribly difficult or expensive for a large, experienced company like Capcom to develop the coding to allow for online play. Even if I grant that it was, there far too many games on the market that have high quality singleplayer and multiplayer campaigns. Companies still manage to produce a complete game for $60 time and time again and make a profit. If you aren�t competent enough to do so, it doesn�t justify passing the cost on to us.

�� there's also additional bandwidth costs associated with it."

Digital distribution is much cheaper than physical distribution, since you are cutting out the middleman. Moreover, the cost of distribution is a fraction of the cost compared to the development costs. This is an even weaker argument than arguing the development costs justify the selling versus mode separately.

Daynger777

I like Resident Evil as much as the next guy but I gotta say that if the versus mode plays like the game does then it will be broken :(

For something so experimental and destined to fail, I think it should have been included on the disc. Making people pay extra for that is bogus. I decided to pass up RE5, mostly because of how short the campaign is supposed to be, I'm not a fan of replaying games unless they're ridiculously fun to play, and RE's get repetitive.

If the story is short I would hope the online play is amazing. But I certainly won't buy this one for online play!

I'll pick it up when it hits bargain bin. Nickel and diming FTW!

Mockingbird

Like most people I'll bitch about it then buy it when it comes out.

Professor Pew

^ what Mxyzptlk said.

Scientist tz

I have no interest in playing an RE5 "versus" mode therefore this news has no bearing on my opinion of the game.

hitnrun

I've only ever bought 1 piece of DLC (not counting whole games, of course); a map pack for Call of Duty 4, which I had played to death by the time I bought it. That's the exception that proves the rule. I don't buy stuff like this.

And we're nearing the point where I'm taking Capcom games down a peg on my personal hype-meter because I know there's going to be something cool taken out for DLC on day 1. The last three titles I've had any interest in from Capcom have all had expensive DLC that should have been on the disc: RE5, Street Fighter 4, and Mega Man 9.

Necros

Icarus hit the nail on the head for me.

casualweaponry

Sorry, but unless they drastically change the control scheme, it won't work.

As it stands now, the characters still control like tanks. RE5's cover system is broken too. It'll be a bunch of people standing still shootin at each other.

I've been playing RE5 for the past week. Fun game but I don't see multi working at all.

AgentMOO

HAHA "We didn't include it in the games that were on offline consoles, so you bitches gotta pay extra"

That is the weakest excuse yet for DLC.

Dimly

They never had an "Africa" in the game before, and we didn't have to pay extra for that.

funran

No this is bullshit, capcom can eat a dick.

parrothead

I think it is crap and will not by buying the mode. That being said, I will be buying RE5

yourbelovedpariah

Here's an excellent idea - make some free downloadable content that fixes the split-screen co-op being the half-baked pile of wank that it is.

TonySwank

I think everyone pretty much expressed their feelings in the last article about this. It feels like such a simple part of the game that it should be included, especially when it is announced before launch. I can't imagine RE being that fun as an online shooter anyway.

Zantetsuken

Does anyone else remember putting your money down for a full, complete game?

Or am I just going old.

I really hope DLC dies quickly, you know somethings wrong when companies are showing DLC before the game is even released.

brainderailment

Although I wouldn't play versus mode on that game, I disapprove of ANY DLC that was made before the game goes gold. That's just plain taking advantage.

rushtodeath

No one... NO ONE should be defending this.

People, when you heard about horse armor years ago, this is the type of thing that people have feared. The slippery slope is in effect.

You would have gotten this shit for free if there wasn't such an institution as DLC.

Corak

Right now I'm not planning on getting the DLC, I am getting the game though. Stop and shoot multiplayer? No thank you. Just no.

mix

I'm in the 5% who will complain and then NOT buy it! I really don't see a RE Vesus being too much fun anyways I've never had anything but singler player experiences with RE and I've been quite happy with it.

Fuck this shit!

Face

4 players and RE control schemes don't really do much to get me excited for a competitive mode. I'll pass.

vexed alex

Icarus made my argument better than I could have ever done.

Cowboy TTop

I'd like it free, but not everything can be.

I love online play, so I'll bag it once I've been through the main game and Mercs mode.

sickNasty

There's no excuse for results Capcom. You have failed at game development.

GigaMach

I love Capcom. That said, after the SFIV costume packs and this shite, I'd love Capcom..to suck it.

Not ONLY do we have to pay more for games at retail ($60 on average) but we have to pay for the content that was formerly used to encourage replay. Lame.

lyfeforce

I could see the functionality being put into a patch later down the line like other games have done, but I personally can't see buying something like this.

Zeno

Not gonna buy it, total bullshit. The controls in no way lend themselves to versus.

Solgrim

Whatever, in this day and age of Gamefly, Piracy, and increasing developement costs I can't complain. Remember, folks, games were 50 bucks back in the day and consisted of 8 to 10 man teams to develope. It really isn't that big of a change. It's buisness and they have every right to try and make money so that they don't end up like Sega and can continue to release quality games.

Chronic Logic

This sucks balls. Almost all of the multiplayer modes are just like CoD, L4D, or GoW. And I bet they all do a better job than Re5. Also who here's like stopping and shooting instead of run and gun in a game of multiplayer?

ArcticFox

Sorry Capcom, thats a pretty weak excuse. They pretty much admitted to the fact that the Versus was on the disk. I pretty much said everything I wanted to say about what a load of crap this is in the last story about this. I will reiterate that I am not buying this DLC. This news actually made me consider cancelling my pre-order on the game and just getting it used a week or so after it comes out. My love for RE4 barely overshadows the perceived sleight of Capcom thinking that myself, as a consumer and purchaser of their games is too stupid to realize that they want an extra $5 from me for a game mode that according to them either should be on the disk ("Versus mode makes use of the assets that exist in the game" [as a side note, this is a bullshit statement anyway, doesn't EVERY game's multiplayer use the "assets that exist" on the disk?) or shouldnt exist at all (that the Multiplayer is "above and beyond the initial scope of Resident Evil 5"). It's obnoxious, and it will sell to people for some unholy reason. It will not, hoewever be purchased by me. I have plenty of other multiplayer games to play with, so missing out on wasting 5 dollars to play this will not make me lose any sleep. Screw off Capcom, don't treat us like we're stupid.

Kyousuke Nanbu

I'd like details on it, I wanna know if its different from the main game or just standard run and gun fare.

pascuz46

That is a terrible response. Hes just beating around the question giving these restarted excuses. Fuck you and your RE5 DLC capcom.

snotrocket

I would love to play verses to check it out, but I don't see RE being a versus game. It's slow and for a dam good reason!

PLUS! I'll be damned if I buy DLC so close to the release!

TheDreadHawk

/facepalm

fulldamage

You know, I know that people hate paying for things -- I get that.

But I have to say, I am amazed at how persistent is this weird point of view that "All extra content in all games could have hypothetically been added to the game before it hit shelves, therefore its a ripoff." I mean -- isn't that obviously, logically, incorrect?

I guess it's tempting to imagine that there are senior executives that look at a finished game and go "Mwhahaha -- cut this feature out of your game and we'll charge more for it later," but d00dz -- that just isn't what happens in real life.

Multiplayer versus requires more netcode, and more engineers to build and improve that netcode, deal with lag, fix versus-specific bugs, etc. It requires designers to spec and tune the modes from scratch, because as stated, that team has never made a versus mode before and they have no pre-existing designs to work from. It takes artists to build and implement versus-specific HUDs, items, effects. They have to figure out how their online matching/lobbying system will work. It takes more producers to coordinate all that effort and get it done in time for the ship date. It takes weeks more QA effort (and team members) to hunt down all the extra versus mode bugs that will exist as the kinks get worked out -- and if they have so many bugs that the title biffs submission to 1st party, then there's more submission fees down the drain. The cost of all these things is significant.

Not only are there more man-hours and more technology to pay for, but those team members who work on such things are usually scheduled already to work on other projects, so OTHER games are going to be hurting while the team finishes building a new mode.

Again -- I don't expect anyone to be happy about paying more for things. I just don't get how anyone can think that a whole new gameplay mode is something that can be slapped in or cut out of a game at the drop of a hat, or to make a quick buck.

/devil's advocate moment. You may now resume bashing. :)

Dexter345

@fulldamage: the fact is though, that other games go through all of that netcode stuff, and include it into the game. Capcom is not going through any more hardship than Epic did with Gears 2 or Bungie did with Halo 3.

Syn

Yeah, we've got Halo and CoD and L4D. Don't need RE5's co-op.

fulldamage

@Dexter345: Aw hey, I ain't saying that a versus mode would be "too hard for them" or anything like that. Personally I don't think it'll be worth the purchase anyway -- can't imagine vs. gunplay where you have to stand still -- though I'm happy to be proved wrong.

But Halo and Gears are about the vs. play. That's not really resident evil's bag. Sure hypothetically they could have done it. But my point was more about this fallacy that any time extra content drops, it must have been (or should have been, or secretly was) included and then dropped for the purpose of nickeling and diming people. Most of the time when a game hits the shelves, the team on it has busted ass to get the game to whatever state its in, on the budget they had, and it's never as good as they wanted it to be. Additional modes of gameplay, add ons, additional features -- such things have an actual cost, they take time and effort to put together, and developers need to eat, so they need to get paid to work on them.

ajaxender

No, I'm not happy with that. Why? BECAUSE THIS FUCKING GAME IS $140 HERE (New Zealand). Thats $20 more than any reasonably priced game, and still $10 more than any other.

And Im getting less for that? And have to pay MORE for pretty basic functionality? Thats nearly another $10 here. Fuck Capcom.

specter620

In my mind there are few examples of DLC as it should function. Valve (PC only) has it on the 'money.' You know what happens every time they release a new, free class pack for TF2? There's a spike in sales. DLC is used to extend the experience of the customers you already have and generate new revenue by bringing in new customers. It's a win-win situation. Drop the price point at the same time (TF2 dipped to $10 when the scout pack was released) and you'll see even more sales. Was it ready when the game went gold? Who the fuck cares. Give it to us for free and sell more copies of the game.

I also have to point out that for something like multiplayer where the success is largely tied to the install base you're shooting yourself in the foot by not tying it to every copy of the game.

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