4818 réponses à ce sujet

[DLC On The Disc]

Crawling_Chaos wrote...

TremCenwyth wrote...

Rob Bartel wrote...
But yes, we understand that $5 can be a lot for some people to pay.

Hey Rob,
I'm going to try and be civil with you, even though that last line in your post there really makes you seem like a ****ing ****** who insulates himself from valid criticism by hiding behind strawmen.
I think there are many people like me who dislike DLC as a content delivery system. And no, not because of how it is priced, but for what it actually is. In the good ol' days, expansion packs usually offered around ten hours of gameplay in the form of a cohesive, epic quest line. And it's just not the same thing as releasing ten hours worth of DLC -- they are qualitatively different experiences. Ten hours worth of DLC split up into unrelated mini-quests spaced apart by weeks/months might be good business strategy, but it just isn't very satisfying to me as a gamer. Compared to an expansion pack, it's a pretty shallow gameplay experience. I know you played video games at one point in your life too, Rob, so you should probably understand my point.
So, I only really want one question answered: Do you plan on delivering content through traditional expansion packs IN ADDITION to DLC? If so, then carry on with the DLC, I really don't mind it at all. But if DLC is supposed to REPLACE expansion packs, as it usually ends up doing, then I'm very disappointed because DLC is just a whole different paradigm altogether.

No, quite a bit of people are irked by the pricing exactly.  He wasn't trying to hide behind any sort of strawman.

You are the first one to come out and say you are dissatisfied with DLC as a content delivery system.

Nobody was complaining that it was DLC until you.  Complaints were structured around "DLC not worth 5 dollars."

Please read the post within the context before you go around calling people ****ing pricks.

Instead of "trying to be civil" you just come off as an angry douchebag.

PS: I would also like this question to be answered, "will there be traditional expansions?"

I'm curious about full on expansions too. I think Shivering Isles for TESIV: Oblivion sold like 3 million. Or do you think focusing on a large content expansion would hinder your ability to put out 1 hour DLC every few weeks? Where do you think the money is at?

[marshalleck]

TremCenwyth wrote...

Rob Bartel wrote...

But yes, we understand that $5 can be a lot for some people to pay.

Hey Rob,
I'm going to try and be civil with you, even though that last line in your post there really makes you seem like a ****ing ****** who insulates himself from valid criticism by hiding behind strawmen.

I think there are many people like me who dislike DLC as a content delivery system. And no, not because of how it is priced, but for what it actually is. In the good ol' days ...

Times change. Keep up or be left behind.

[Rylor Tormtor]

Malautomedonte wrote...

I hate DLC's... Some sort of milking a cow until nothing remains. I think we have to blame EA for this. I'd prefer a big expansion pack rather than these little, useless missions.

Ya, Bioware NEVER did DLC before EA...

Oh wait..

I must have missed the part where you were an idiot.

[Matthew Young CT]

Mages (and rogues, but I heart mages) need more luvin.



Can any Bio person comment on what the plan is with DLC/Expansions/sequels? Just DLC until a sequel, DLC+Expansion/s?

[Chamucks Deluxe]

An hour to complete??? Man, why release this stuff? It's not a TV show, it's a video game.



Sorry for being grumpy but I miss DLC like KOT9 and Shivering Isles (please don't bring up horse armor). Are there going to be any DLC's that are "expansion" worthy or is the plan to add hour to hour once a month or so? If you continually add content then I suppose that would be good, but 1 hour of content every few months is hard to keep someone involved and immersed in the storyline.



So I re-iterate, are there any plans for major expansions and content?

[Rubarack]

$5 isn't a lot of money, but it's a lot for half an hour of recycled content. It's a shame we won't see any decent sized expansions as this is clearly a far more profitable model. But please don't insert more hawkers into the game.

[Ickabod27]

It doesn't matter how much they charge for it, if I remember correctly people were even complaining about the free DLC.



$5 is a fair price IMO. I just want the content to be intergrated in with the rest of the story and I'll be happy. That's what makes the difference between DLC and user made content which is free.



Also consider that game publishers spit out games that only take like 10 hours to play through and they cost just as much as DA. Bioware had to have smaller margins due to the level of work they put into this game, if a couple bucks helps to insure that they see there is a market for another game in this series than I'm all for supporting it.



Besides how many of us paid $15 a month for WoW?

[Chamucks Deluxe]

Rubarack wrote...

$5 isn't a lot of money, but it's a lot for half an hour of recycled content. It's a shame we won't see any decent sized expansions as this is clearly a far more profitable model. But please don't insert more hawkers into the game.

The money shouldn't be a problem. Collecting bottles covers your DLC habits. It's just a major concern to a few people on here that this is the only thing we may get for add-ons. I don't want a new mission every few months. Like I said it makes things difficult when it comes to immersion.

I would really, really be appreciative if someone had any idea if an expansion has the potential of being in the works, and if so then, how large? What are the odds? Even a vauge "theres a good/small chance" would be relished.

[Rob Bartel]

Oof! Go away for one little meeting and the thread suddenly balloons to 6 pages. ;o) Let's see what I can do to catch up.



As for where this fits in the context of the DA:O storyline, we're trying to keep it as wide open as possible (much like we have for Stone Prisoner and Warden's Keep). The Battle for Ostagar has obviously already occurred and, for those starting a brand new game, the plot will be accessible from the party camp, post-Lothering. As I've mentioned, it's also available from the Epilogue save for those who've completed the game (the Epilogue Save represents a moment in time from shortly before the final battle). The balance will scale to match your party anywhere from Level 6 and up.



As for the patch and the issues that many experienced with our Day 1 content, some of that involved server-side issues that we've already cleaned up. PC Patch 1.01 is already out and 1.02 is in final testing and certification to address a number of other issues that have been identified. Planning on Patch 1.03 is currently underway. Most of the issues have been on PC side (where things are more complicated due to variable hardware, the added complexity of the toolset and user-made content, etc) although we're tracking some on the consoles as well. Most of these issues have proven to be programming related and therefore haven't significantly impacted the content teams, which means we've been able to maintain our focus on developing new content.



More answers to come...

[Eshaye]

Sweet!! You can go back after the epilogue that's makes me giddy Although that means all I have with me is Alistair, Zevran and Dog, I guess that's a full party.

edit: Ohhh Epilogue save isn't what I thought it was..

Modifié par Eshaye, 19 novembre 2009 - 07:35 .

[mastorofpuppetz]

Rubarack wrote...

$5 isn't a lot of money, but it's a lot for half an hour of recycled content. It's a shame we won't see any decent sized expansions as this is clearly a far more profitable model. But please don't insert more hawkers into the game.

Once again, total assinimne assumption, how many games have DLC and Expansions? Quite a few, games like this almost always have expansions.  Imagine, there can be both..

[DarrenHollywood]

What the heck is wrong with people? So many games are less than 8 hours long now that the complaining is completely unjustified.



At $5 per hour a pop, we would get a 12 hour game for the normal $60 price tag. A 12 hours of High Quality gaming. Gaming that is fun to replay over and over with different characters and different classes.



Forget the coffee or lunch reference everyone keeps comparing it too, let's compare it to other DLC.

Fallout 3(all): 1-3 hours each, $10 each

Oblivion (Horse Armor): 0 hours, $2.50

Oblivion (Shivering Isle): 25 hours, $30.00 (but this was boring)



It looks Dragon Age is right in line. It's about the same length as Fallout, but cheaper. It's more expensive than Shivering Isle, but FAR more entertaining. Then it's not the complete waste of money that Horse armor is.



Keep cranking out the content Bioware, it's just another reason for me to keep on replaying!

[mastorofpuppetz]

DarrenHollywood wrote...

What the heck is wrong with people? So many games are less than 8 hours long now that the complaining is completely unjustified.

At $5 per hour a pop, we would get a 12 hour game for the normal $60 price tag. A 12 hours of High Quality gaming. Gaming that is fun to replay over and over with different characters and different classes.

Forget the coffee or lunch reference everyone keeps comparing it too, let's compare it to other DLC.
Fallout 3(all): 1-3 hours each, $10 each
Oblivion (Horse Armor): 0 hours, $2.50
Oblivion (Shivering Isle): 25 hours, $30.00 (but this was boring)

It looks Dragon Age is right in line. It's about the same length as Fallout, but cheaper. It's more expensive than Shivering Isle, but FAR more entertaining. Then it's not the complete waste of money that Horse armor is.

Keep cranking out the content Bioware, it's just another reason for me to keep on replaying!

Agreed, fallout 3 DLC was poor, except Point lookout was 15 hours +, but the rest were shortm and bad too boot. And they were 10 bucks each.  bethesda started with Horse armour, LMAO.

[eyesofastorm]

DA:O is the bomb. But, DLC as it has been so far, is EPIC FAIL! Sorry guys, but I cut my teeth in gaming when there were actual expansion packs. That's what I expect for add-on or post-release content. This new DLC model will never catch on with me. You got me once with Warden's Keep. I won't make the same mistake again.

[sugasugaki]

DarrenHollywood wrote...

Keep cranking out the content Bioware, it's just another reason for me to keep on replaying!

Looting shiny armor off your dead comrades in Ostagar isn't my idea of roleplaying

[LenaMarie]

Bioware get your DLC crap together. This isnt even real DLC, its more like a Microtransaction, selling new gear wrapped up in flimsy DLC like box.  Wardens Keep itself was less then a hour, I imagine this will be more like 20 minutes even when  not skipping cutscenes.

EA Bioware is really just EA. Sad, very sad.

[Valgarus]

So any updates on when its going to be released`?

[Chamucks Deluxe]

Crawling_Chaos wrote...

Chamucks Deluxe wrote...

An hour to complete??? Man, why release this stuff? It's not a TV show, it's a video game.

Sorry for being grumpy but I miss DLC like KOT9 and Shivering Isles (please don't bring up horse armor). Are there going to be any DLC's that are "expansion" worthy or is the plan to add hour to hour once a month or so? If you continually add content then I suppose that would be good, but 1 hour of content every few months is hard to keep someone involved and immersed in the storyline.

So I re-iterate, are there any plans for major expansions and content?

Horse armor is the first DLC that Bethesda released, and it was 2 dollars to boot.

Yeah... but.. it was like... horse armor....

C'mon man.. Horse Armor?? Seriously?
hahaha It was a terrible idea.

[JamesX]

if the DLC is just 1 hour I find that disappointing. Warden's Keep was already incredibly short.

$5 for 1 hour of game-play is fairly steep. Considering if in the next 2 years Bioware adds, let say, 100 hours of game play (which is only 2-3x as long as the orignal game) at the going rate you will be paying $500.
Perspective is not just what is 1 thing cost, but how much everything added together will cost.
But DLC is definitely more profitable for developers - it is the nickel and dime idea.

Modifié par JamesX, 19 novembre 2009 - 07:45 .

[Rob Bartel]

As for areas, Ostagar itself has seen a major re-art to snow it over and make it feel like Darkspawn have been lingering there for a while. We've also opened up some new portions of the map that you weren't previously able to access. The quest also includes 3 additional areas which are smaller than Ostagar and involve a greater degree of re-use.



Regarding dialogue, given that Darkspawn represent the primary villain in this mission, don't expect them to wax poetic before attempting to slice your head off. The quest-giver has a sizeable conversation but the juicy bits are really the interactions with your followers who fought at Ostagar. This is an emotional place for them to return to and they all have strong opinions regarding the King, his fate, and his legacy. The word count isn't huge by any means but, for those who are in it for the story and the drama, the emotional payoff is definitely there.

[Filton_Kingswood]

A question. Does Bioware view small pieces of DLC, priced at about USD 5-7 an hour, to be the _sole_ revenue stream for Dragon Age expansion / content? Or are those of us who would like to see a proper XP (i.e. new NPC / adventure / 15-20 hours of gameplay) going to be disappointed? Personally I'm seeing the possibilty of this game becoming a single-player game with a MMO pricing model by stealth. And I'm not sure I like it.

[Le_Mieux]

JamesX wrote...

if the DLC is just 1 hour I find that disappointing. Warden's Keep was already incredibly short.

5 hour for 1 hour of game-play is fairly steep. Considering if in the next 2 years Bioware adds, let say, 100 hours of game play (which is only 2-3x as long as the orignal game) at the going rate you will be paying $500.
Perspective is not just what is 1 thing cost, but how much everything added together will cost.
But DLC is definitely more profitable for developers - it is the nickel and dime idea.

Yeah, it's definitely more profitable considering they cut EA almost completely out of the equation.

Who needs publishers when you have DLC?

[Roland Aseph]

I'll purchase every bit of DLC that is made for this game, and be happy to do it.



I'll admit I'm a "completest" and like to have the "whole" game that's available.



But I also like to support a game and developer I enjoy and believe in!



All you can do is read about the DLC and decide if it's for you or not. It's an option, nothing more, nothing less.



If it's not for you then fine skip it...but some of us a eager for "any" new/official DAO content we can get

[Reiella]

TremCenwyth wrote...

So, I only really want one question answered: Do you plan on delivering content through traditional expansion packs IN ADDITION to DLC? If so, then carry on with the DLC, I really don't mind it at all. But if DLC is supposed to REPLACE expansion packs, as it usually ends up doing, then I'm very disappointed because DLC is just a whole different paradigm altogether.

That's an odd statement to make.  Knights 1 had DLC, no expansion pack, but do we even know if there was going to be one?

Oblivion had DLC, and an expansion pack.

Fallout 3 had DLC, but no expansion pack, a fair point there perhaps.

Mass Effect had 2 bits of DLC, and no expansion.

So a few that existed without expansion packs yet had DLC, but I'm left wondering, if there really is a causation, or if that's simply correlation.  Knights 2 had no DLC, yet also had no expansion pack.  NWN2 had no DLC [well I suppose you could argue the premium module as DLC, but that's a bit of a different beast ], yet did have expansions.

I think as you said, it's just a different paradigm, and should be considered as such.  Simple answer is there will be an expansion if it's profitable for their to be one.