3. Gods Of DLC
Downloadable content has become expected to accompany nearly every game released. Map packs, extra missions, campaign add-ons, and even horse armor are ready for purchase for almost every game in your library. Companies like Activision and Treyarch charge you 15 dollars for a simple new setting to log on to and kill and cuss complete strangers online. While companies like Rockstar and Take-Two Interactive give you a complete 6-12 hour campaign, let you revisit your favorite characters, give you all new missions and story, and 3-4 new multiplayer modes all for around 10 bucks. In Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City, we were given two brand new characters, stories, missions, and content ranging from 10-15 hours to complete for each episode. The Lost and The Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony offered up some of the most fun you could have in Liberty City long after you had finished GTA IV. The best part about these additions is it offered some back-story and closure to some of the big events that occurred in GTA IV. You get to experience throughout GTA IV and the two DLC additions the kidnapping and rescue of Roman Bellic, the exchange of Gracie Ancelotti from both the kidnappers and rescuers perspective, you experience three ways to escape a museum diamond deal gone wrong, and you eventually get to see what exactly happened to those pesky cursed diamonds. These episodes were two great full games on their own, and a must play for anyone who loved, liked, or even hated GTA IV. Two years later came the release of the highly acclaimed Red Dead Redemption. The game released to rave reviews and a few months later a zombie themed DLC pack was announced, Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare. Considering nearly every game was being released with some kind of tacked on zombie mode, I was a little disappointed that Rockstar seemed to be going for an empty cash grab. However, I was amazed and excited to step back into the shoes of my favorite protagonist, fight four types of zombies with dead-eye, revisit my favorite supporting characters, see the entire map filled with the undead, find the four horses of the apocalypse, reach the highest level of the undead sharpshooter challenge, hunt all of the newly undead wildlife, and enjoy the 6-hour campaign all for the low price of 10 dollars. That still isn't even scratching the surface of all the content this DLC came with. I wish more developers were this generous when developing extra content. Some developers charge 10 dollars or more for a measly extra hour of story. Often times it is endless fetch quests, and you find yourself wondering why you spent the time and money on it. While Rockstar's DLC, Undead Nightmare in particular, can get a little repetitive, seeing Rockstar's effort and B-movie sense of humor warrants no hate. I can't wait to see what they have in mind and bring to the table for GTA V. If the past is any indication, I have no doubt it will be satisfying and keep me entertained for hours on end.