Since its inception, the development of downloadable content has been a mixed bag for the gaming industry. While consumers are enjoying additional content for many of their favorite games in ways that previous generations were unable to provide, publishers are finding tricky ways of using it as a way to generate significant additional revenue without much effort, with some even referring to it as ‘milking’. The Call of Duty series has been arguably the most controversial due to the extraordinarily high price point of its DLC, and it isn’t uncommon to see a pack of less than half a dozen maps fetch $14.99 on the PlayStation Store. A vocal few have protested against this trend, but numbers show that they aren’t having much impact.
The latest official numbers released from Activision reveal that Call of Duty: Black Ops, last year’s holiday blockbuster, has already accrued more than 18 million sales of DLC alone. It’s only been around nine months since it debuted, so the numbers will continue to grow leading into 2012, and given the pricey and profitable nature of Call of Duty DLC, this will be sure to cause other publishers to follow suit. Not only has Black Ops been able to completely overshadow other releases in the past year in terms of sales, but its DLC has generated over $270 million by itself, a number that a great number of retail titles only dream of achieving.
How do you feel about DLC and the trends we’ve seen with it this generation? Share your thoughts, concerns, and experiences in the comments below.
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