It’s too late to actually change anything with the actual game coming in November, but I just wanted to share my feelings on what works as DLC and what doesn’t. I’d also like to see if others agree with me.
I think it’s important that DLC presents new areas to explore, preferably with a different aesthetic to environments used in the main game, but if this comes at the price of making the visual assets look cheap and rushed, it’s preferable to just stick to using main game assets inventively.
Similarly, I think that it’s far preferable to stick to the characters from the core game than to try to introduce new characters for a 4-6 hour DLC. Some people really liked Tallis because she was a strong and sexy female character, but she was introduced too quickly and we were expected to like her too easily. I far preferred the Legacy DLC just because it involved Hawke’s sibling in a really emotive way. When you’re using core game characters it allows you to flesh out their characters even more, and you know players will have already developed strong relationships with them.
Although I’m saying that you should feel free to reuse main game assets and stick with the original characters, you do also need to provide the impression that the players are getting actual new content (I think this was one of the main problems with Ostagar).
A great example is Lair of the Shadow Broker, which brought back a favourite NPC but expanded her story in a way that felt natural and not tacked on. It reused a lot of assets, but it invested in the new assets it created to make them feel as high-quality as content developed for the original game. I guess the easiest analogy would be to do a continuation of the Morrigan/Flemeth relationship here, or something with Cullen, Alistair, or Leliana.
An important note: I thought the Black Emporium DLC was fantastic, and a great example of a simple, small-scale DLC that added immensely to my enjoyment. Partly it was because it was one of the few places in DA2 where you could find items that seemed really interesting and aspirational in terms of cost and power level. They weren’t always the best items in the game, and if they were, they cost astronomical amounts, which helped preserve the game balance and meant you didn’t feel like you were cheating by using DLC items.
But it was also great because it was a beautifully designed space, with great lighting and atmosphere. It fleshed out Kirkwall, which really needed fleshing out (and more shops), and it was the only vendor with a real personality. I can’t imagine it took many resources to develop, but I think it was a perfect example of how to do extra-item DLC properly.
So there’s two main size types for DLC as I see it: the big, “expansion pack” style DLC like Legacy and Lair of the Shadow Broker, which I think should build and develop story elements presented in the main game by physically taking you somewhere new, rather than trying to give you an entirely extraneous experience.
And there’s the small, self-contained “premium content” DLC, which should slot into the main game seamlessly and not give the impression that you’ve simply paid for an advantage in-game. If it’s just weapons, there should at least be some small amount of content surrounding it, even if it’s just a well-appointed room.
At least that’s what I think.
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