Online Passes, Day 1 DLC, Disk Locked Content

These are buisiness practices from Big Video game companies used make more money and screw over the consumer. I'll be going over each of these practices and talk about some aspects that are acceptable, and aspects that are unacceptable. I know I may sound like a broken record here, but I need to express my opinions on the subject


Online Pass


I think we all know what this is. It blocks off the multiplayer portion of the game unless we enter a code, or pay $10. It's made to combat the sale of used games. But this is not a good practice because it hurts the consumer by having to go through an extra step of entering the code before we can play online. And if you buy the game a year later, you might be screwed! The passes expire after a while so even if you bought the game new, you can't get the multiplayer unless you contact customer support, which is yet another unnecessary step!

Now there are two other types of online passes out there besides just blocking multiplayer

Multiplayer progression block:

This I'm sorta OK with. It doesn't block off Multi-Player all togather, it just caps you at a certain point and then you need the pass. While I still don't like it, this I think is the best compromise with the Online Pass.

Offline Pass

Now this I'm not OK with at all! It blocks off SINGLE PLAYER CONTENT unless you enter a code. That means that part of your game is lock out unless you use the code! I'll talk more on this in a minute.

Day 1 DLC

This is pretty self explanatory. A DLC pack that is released the day the game first comes out. Now while it might not be that bad on the surface, It's really crappy if you think about it. Why release a DLC pack the day the game first comes out? That content could have been on the game disk for no extra cost or download step! It's just a way for publishers to nickel and dime you out of every penny.

DISK LOCKED CONTENT

This is probably the biggest slap in the face a publisher can give to a fan. Content on your disk is locked off until you pay for a downloadable key to unlock it. YOU PAYED FOR THE FUCKING DISK, YOU DESERVE EVERYTHING THAT IS AVAILABLE ON THAT DISK WITH THE $60 PURCHASE! It's bullshit that publishers are trying to sell you content that you already payed for! This goes for the use of Offline passes as well. However, as long as you have the option of unlocking that content by other means besides payment(like game play progression or finding Easter eggs) That's OK with me.

Alright, that'y my 2 cents on these business practices. We need to come togather and figure out how to stop these practices. Where it be not buying the DLC, buy the game used, pirate, or boycott the game altogether. Publishers, these practices need to stop. For those that are doing it, you know who you are:

Spoiler:

What since when have online passes expired? Name one game where the online pass expires after a set amount of time. There have been instances of server shut downs but those are for games where its basically impossible to find people to play with. I mean who is still playing FIFA 08?

ghost23 wrote:

What since when have online passes expired? Name one game where the online pass expires after a set amount of time. There have been instances of server shut downs but those are for games where its basically impossible to find people to play with. I mean who is still playing FIFA 08?

http://www.joystiq.com/2011/12/03/ea-online-pass-can-expire-for-new-game-purchases-but-it-should/