All right, so even though Street Fighter X Tekken sold 1.4 million copies, it's now being reported that Capcom has actually paid attention to the cries and complaints about on-disc DLC and they will address this issue moving forward...after Dragon's Dogma. So does this mean there is hope for Resident Evil 6? It's a tough call to make.
I didn't know that Dragon's Dogma had disc-locked content, but you know what? Whatever, that's not even an issue right now.
Anyways, Giant Bomb picked up the quote from Capcom's senior vice president Christian Svensson on the Capcom Unity forum, where Svensson laid out the following in regards to disc-locked content...
We've been getting several questions, here and elsewhere about the future of on-disc DLC.We would like to assure you that we have been listening to your comments and as such have begun the process of re-evaluating how such additional game content is delivered in the future. As this process has only just commenced in the past month or so, there will be some titles, where development began some time ago and that are scheduled for release in the coming months, for which we are unable to make changes to the way some of their post release content is delivered.One such title is Dragon’s Dogma, where the decision to include some additional (but not all planned additional) game content for the game on disc was made at the beginning of the game’s development cycle as at the time this was determined to be the most efficient way of ensuring certain content was made available. Owners of Dragon’s Dogma will be able to further their gameplay experience with the release of additional quests, weapons and other items in the months following the game going on sale.
Sven follows up the explanation with the simple phrase that "Just wanted people to know in advance the whys, wherefores and where we're going in the future. You are being heard. Thanks."
I know some of our readers feel we "pick" on Capcom, but we do it for the greater good. We come from an age (not too long ago) where you unlocked additional fighters, clothes, items and accessories by playing the game not by paying extra for it. Namco is showing that it's still possible to have a high quality title with tons of content without charging extra for all the extras on top of a retail price, as detailed by the game's producer at an event for Tekken Tag Tournament 2.
We know that Capcom can do better and do right by consumers, and it's nice to know that they have at least heard the outcries. However, take note that this does not mean we should lax off and let things slide, we want to prevent more publishers from following suit, such as what Deep Silver is trying to cover up right now.
Instead, what this means is that we stay vigilant and ensure that gamers are treated with respect as consumers...and consumers are always right. Hopefully this doesn't mean that Capcom is coming up with another scheme but rather better quality service instead.
If you take a look over at the Sega camp, they're trying something different with Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown, launching the game at a budget price of $14.99 while having optional DLC packs available as well. I'm not saying it's perfect but there's definitely a balance there that enables consumers, developers and publishers to feel like the final product is of fair trade.
DLC isn't inherently bad, but purposefully ripping content out of the game and re-selling it on top of a full retail price is just straight up thievery.
Anyways, Giant Bomb's Patrick Klepek mentions that he will further investigate the matter and see if Capcom has plans for more disc-locked content for Resident Evil 6 beyond the Mercenary Mode pre-order maps. We'll keep you posted on any additional details as they become available.
