Disney Infinity will have DLC data on-disc
1/27/13 12:50am
During a recent chat with Videogamer, Disney Infinity executive producer John Vignocchi revealed that Disney Interactive’s take on the Skylander’s formula will (unsurprisingly) be a franchise with yearly installments, and that the first entry will have 12 months worth of DLC… Scrooge McDuck’s money vault is about to become a very real thing.
Speaking of which, it turns out the first entry in the series will contain DLC data on the game disc itself. Vignocchi said that while hackers could unfortunately discover the content and reveal it before the start of each pack’s PR campaign, thus ruining “the magic for the consumer"; this decision had to be greenlit.
"In the future, as we move on to new versions of consoles we're going to be able to digitally deliver that content, and the figurines themselves will simply be dongles that allow us to then instantigate a download of that content. But given the current generation of consoles, the content needs to be on the disc. But in the future we'll be able to push all that digitally so we don't run into that problem."
Oh boy. I’m going to come out and say this: I hate on-disc DLC… when it’s completed or at least highly functional. My opinion is that when you pay (sometimes $60+) for a game, you should have access to the completed content. However, DI is a unique example.
First off, I’m not quite sure we’re going be seeing a SFxT situation here. Think about it. Could Disney really complete the 12 months worth of DLC content by the June launch date? Considering the amount of toys the company is going to want to sell, not likely. So most of the DLC (if not all of it) will probably be incomplete. The reason for putting it on the disc is probably to make the download of the complete data fast enough to not upset the child audience, which is a decision I can fully agree with.
Besides, whether the full DLC data is on the disc or not, separate toys do need to be purchased in order to unlock these specific aspects of the game anyway, which is a fact Disney fans and parents already knew before this info was revealed. So it can’t really be said that the devs are cheating anyone when there’s this much transparency about the business model.
I really don’t know how to feel about this one. The kid in me thinks the toy idea is awesome, and rad, and magical, and all that good stuff but as an adult, I feel for the parents who’ll be buying this one for their kids, as it’s going to be an expensive package when all is said and done. Especially when you consider there’s going to be yearly sequels. Yikes.
All I can say is that both sides of the on-disc DLC debate probably should wait it out until the game’s lunch to see how much of the game is available without the need for extra toys, and if the DLC data that’s on the disc is actually complete, before digging too deeply into the situation.
Game Informer’s Jeff Cook made some solid points in favor of this business model, if you want to head on over there and give it a look.
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g1 DISCUSSIONS
Flapperdoodle
However it goes, Disney better be careful...
Sckarton
fuck you Disney for coping crapcom methods. didn't they hear all the backlash when crapcom did it with SFXT (a crappy game mind you)?
darkhyrulelord
This doesn't surprise me based on how the game works. .....sad thing is that this is going to make a ton of cash... : /
TheMikko
I love how 'on-disc DLC' is such a buzzword people whine even when that whining makes NO sense whatsoever. How would having to stop to download data when you first use a new figurine to access a character be a good thing? With the model this game uses, which is NO secret, being precisely the same as in Skylanders, this is a GOOD thing and honestly shouldn't even be called 'DLC' because you don't go into the PSN or XBL store to purchase the content in question. It's Buy-A-Toy-Figurine-To-Access-Content, or handily BATFTAC for short. :P
They Call Me The Fizz
Given the Skylanders business model, the use of disc-locked content is understandable...
Bullshit but understandable...
Anonymous.Hipster
This isn't really DLC because you're unlocking it with the figurines. Just saying.
ThePortlandian
I don't count this as DLC on disc. I was very against what Capcom has been doing with DLC but Disney has it right. They have the content there but you have to buy the accompanying toy to unlock that content, makes sense for the type of game it is. Plus, there may be environments for toys that we have no idea are coming and they as programmers got it out of the way so there isn't a hefty DLC download, just plop down the toy when it comes out and you are good to go. You buy the toy the content is unlocked. This is how on-disc DLC can work.
SSBBrawler
I love how most of the comments are about the evils of on-disc DLC. Guys, did you read the quote? The developers are limited by the tech available to them, so they had to work around it; if they tried to have the DLC off-disc, new figurines would be virtually useless. This isn’t a scheme to get more money for a complete game or to screw over used game buyers. This is what had to be done so we could enjoy the game to its fullest.
ruinedmirage
All that's left now is the typical "They're not changing the gameplay enough/innovative enough with their sequels" argument.
Kavortino
This is retarded. The problem with On-Disk DLC is not whether we know if its there or not. The problem is that WE ALREADY BOUGHT IT, why do we have to buy it twice?