EA Proud Of Day-One DLC: Selling $20 DLC So The Sale Becomes $80

Apologists are probably having a really hard time trying to come up with new excuses why video game publishers are "always in the right". We see a lot of people desperately trying to defend why everything they do is good for consumers, like that old Gordon Gecko quote "Greed is good."

Well, if you're not really pro-corporate you'll probably find the following comments from EA's COO, Peter Moore, to be offensive and disparaging because he admits EA loves day-one DLC and the profits are huge, especially considering that a $60 game becomes an $80 purchase.

We reported before how EA's CEO John Riccitiello gloated over the 40% attachment rate to the day-one DLC for Mass Effect 3, "From Ashes"...DLC that was later proven to have been cut from the game and sold back to gamers as premium content, with the only some media files missing, similar to the Risen 2: Dark Waters disc-locked content fiasco.

Well, according to a brief interview with GamaSutra [via GameIndustry.biz], Moore stated that...

Wow, from a consumer's perspective that probably seems disheartening.

The common argument has been "Don't like it, don't buy it." However that's far from the truth. A lot of gamers love Mass Effect, Street Fighter etc,. etc,. so when you find out some vital component for expanding the lore or enabling you to play as your favorite fighter is not part of the main game but instead bundled into a $10 or $20 DLC package it essentially means you're at a crossroad to either fork over extra cash for something you do like or simply not experience it at all.

Another argument in favor of day-one DLC has been that most of it is optional, but in the case of Mass Effect, story-related lore is what the entire game is all about, if you're not playing Mass Effect for the story then you probably picked up the wrong game. So selling a story-oriented character for a story-oriented game doesn't really seem all that optional if you really want to understand...well...the whole story.

Let's also not forget that when it comes to a video game, other than the "Start game" option and the ability to move your character, everything else is optional. Heck, for Capcom, the Asura's Wrath ending (being sold right now for $6.99) was optional. Super moves are optional...so is taking vehicles in Grand Theft Auto...so is using gadgets in Batman: Arkham City....so is customizing vehicles in Forza Motorsport...and so is using a variety of weapons in Battlefield, Halo or Call of Duty. Everything in a game is pretty much optional outside of moving your character to get to the end of the level. So the argument of day-one DLC being "optional" is moot.

But based on Moore's words you can bet your bottom dollar that EA won't be abandoning day-one DLC anytime soon. You can read the entire interview over at GamaSutra.