Capcom Says It's Done With On-Disc DLC

[John Funk]

Capcom Says It's Done With On-Disc DLC

Street Fighter x Tekken was the last straw.

In general, most gamers don't mind the idea of DLC - it's content you can experience after you've finished everything else, and it's a way for the developer to keep making money off their product. Day-one DLC is slightly more controversial but still accepted, because it's usually developed after work on the "main" game has started to wind up. But for many gamers, DLC that's already on the shipped disc is unforgivable. It was completed! It's right there on the disc! So why can't I play it?

In March, gamers discovered that Capcom's Street Fighter X Tekken had a roster of 12 additional fighters on the game's disc who were currently unplayable - characters who would later be purchasable as DLC after the release of the PS Vita version. While Capcom defend itself to the Better Business Bureau [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/116155-Capcom-Responds-to-Street-Fighter-X-Tekken-DLC-Complaints] by arguing that there was essentially no distinction between DLC already on a disc and DLC you have to download, except for the part where it's called "downloadable" content and not "already on the disc" content.

Either way, though, Capcom says those days are at an end. In a post on the Capcom Unity blog [http://www.capcom-unity.com/ask_capcom/go/thread/view/7371/29118153/Question_about_on-disc_DLC], Capcom USA senior VP Chris Svensson said that the publisher would be "re-evaluating how [DLC] is delivered in the future." Svensson admitted that there were some games, like the upcoming Dragon's Dogma (out May 25th), that were too close to release to make drastic changes to DLC plans. Still, he said, gamers' voices and complaints "are being heard."

One can only hope that Capcom's actions will match its words. Because while DLC in general can be pretty cool, it's never fun to make a purchase and then discover that all you're downloading was a couple of kilobytes' worth of unlock code.

Source: Edge [http://www.edge-online.com/news/capcom-ditches-disc-dlc-and-promises-change]

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[gigastar]

Well now after shooting itself in the foot, Capcom has now hopefully cauterised the wound with this.

Now time will tell if that wound will heal or just get infected again.

 

[natster43]

I want to say this is good, but it being Capcom, they will find some way to fuck it up and piss me off with it.

 

[RaikuFA]

I don't believe them. They think it was just the on disc DLC. But it tanked for more than that.

1. They promoted it with a neckbeard who said something that every fighting game "elite" wants to say.

2. Everyone knows a updated version will come out soon. Probably announced next month.

3. They supported SOPA and weren't ashamed of it.

4. "If you don't play fighters or zombie games, get out, we don't want you." Was their attitude starting last year.

5. They held some Twilight prequel fighter hostage in exchange for this games sales.

 

[Qitz]

Yet, when the next Street Fighter comes out someone will crack the disk and find all the DLC fighters AGAIN

 

[Soviet Heavy]

It couldn't possibly be due to the massive backlash and rather crappy sales now, could it?

 

[Username Redacted]

Um... capcom actually listening to gamers? Did the universe just implode?

I don't recall them saying anything about making better games or not trying to rake their customers over the coals so to say that they're listening to people is, to me, a bit of a stretch at the moment. I have a feeling that the no more disk locked content is more of a reaction to how easily people cracked their game to get at it than any actual gesture of understanding of why people are upset that it's there in the first place.

 

[GonzoGamer]

So one day EA says day one DLC is great and another day Capcom says that they understand that gamers don't dig on disc DLC.
I don't see much of a difference between the two.
At least one company is learning some limits to how much they can transparently squeeze the consumer. My guess is that they're just going to get more sneaky about it.

 

[Ne1butme]

This reminds me of a story i heard in my computer ethics class. Back in the time of mainframes (60s/70s), a computer company (whose name eludes me) would sell two different varieties of their computer. They had the basic model and the premium model. As expected, the premium version was much more expensive.

There was no hardware or software difference between the two models. To switch between them, an authorized tech just had to turn a key in the machine. The key unlocked additional ram and sped up the processor.

If a company had the basic version, and wanted to upgrade, the tech would be sent over and the key is turned and the customer has a more powerful machine immediately.

An argument could be made that the customer was buying a hobbled inferior machine, but the computer company argued that customer buys the quality of the machine they require and it's up to the manufacturer to find the best way to provide upgrade services. And if shipping the full premier rig and then limiting it was the best way, they could do it.


On-Disc DLC seems to be in the same vein. However, instead of providing a basic and premium model to allow the user to decide which version to buy, they force everyone to buy the basic and then later provide the ability to unlock the premium.

If i were Capcom, i would sell the basic version (with the DLC locked) at a cost lower than 60 and the provide the premium (with all DLC unlocked) at a cost slightly higher than 60. That way, the user can decide which version to purchase and give basic users the ability to upgrade later.

 

[Covarr]

But for many gamers, DLC that's already on the shipped disc is unforgivable. It was completed! It's right there on the disc! So why can't I play it?

Relevant part bolded.

Capcom USA senior VP Chris Svensson said that the publisher would be "re-evaluating how [DLC] is delivered in the future."

Relevant part bolded.

Read this VERY carefully; they're not listening to consumers. They're only pretending to. They aren't really addressing the core of the complaints about Street Fighter X Tekken's DLC, namely that it was completed in time to ship with the game and was only DLC for the sake of a quick money grab. Rather, they are addressing the issue of delivery method. So we'll see just as much day-1 DLC from them, even content that was ready in time to be included and could've been part of the main game. People weren't mad that it was on the disc, they were mad that it should've been included and unlocked from the start.

The only impact this'll have is that our discs will be less full, and we'll use more bandwidth to download the DLC. It'll still be planned and made well in advance like it already is.

P.S. Thanks

 

[Shoggoth2588]

I'll believe it when I see it. I also look forward to future spelling mistakes Capcom will be making with future releases. I can always use more collectibles.

 

[Therumancer]

My basic attitude is that if they want to make their apologies meaningful they should give all the on-disc DLC for free, as it should have been part of the product to begin with. Not so much a desire for "free stuff" on my part as much as me not taking claims of reform on the part of a company unless it puts it's money where it's mouth is so to speak. "Well yeah, we're really sorry about this and will be changing, but you'll have to bite it here and with the next game we're releasing since the code will be ready at the time of release, and on disc, but we already decided to charge more to unlock it, so we're kind of sticking with that".

No, this message doesn't implode the universe or anything, it's damage control, with Capcom really not doing anything. They are just making a promise, one which they say won't be delivered on in the near future. Probably in hopes that in a few months the sheeple will have forgotten about it so they can continue business as usual.

That's my thoughts at any rate.

 

[Sixties Spidey]

I'll believe it when I see it. There's far too much shit between Capcom and consumers, and while this is a step in the right direction, I doubt that it will go further than that if they listen more to their consumers and evaluate the decisions that they made over the course of the past five-plus years.

Captcha: be mine. No, Capcom. Actions speak louder than words... I think we need to stop seeing each other for a while.

 

[teqrevisited]

Too little too late, to be honest. I was already done with Capcom and not over their DLC policies.

 

[RJ 17]

That's one developer down, now we just need to get EA to pull their heads out of their asses and listen...

 

[Brad Shepard]

Can bioware follow suit? People seem to forget Javik was already on the disk.

 

[Something Amyss]

Well now after shooting itself in the foot, Capcom has now hopefully cauterised the wound with this.

Now time will tell if that wound will heal or just get infected again.

Or if they just shoot the other one.

 

[Something Amyss]

Can bioware follow suit? People seem to forget Javik was already on the disk.

they don't forget. There were just...A lot of other issues with the game.