Despite the justification of "it's a big game so they can do what they want," there are clearly some bad DLC practices here. If fans don't make some noise over it now, it will only get worse in the future.
- Simple difficulty modes should either come with the game or be free additions. The Hero's Path DLC, to me, is worse, and should have been a free addition without doubt. The functionality is already in the game. It's clear that these were added to the DLC package in order to make more people buy it.
- A Season Pass is fine. Bundling DLC without an option to buy separately is not. That just plain sucks. I REALLY hope that people don't let this one go without protest. It could have a real negative effect on future DLC.
Really, the bundling thing is the big issue here. It's a bad precedent and should not be considered acceptable. Letting bad DLC practices continue is as much on the consumer as it is on the publisher. As someone who picks and chooses DLC (I don't care anything about Arena DLC, for example) I absolutely don't want bundling to become an industry standard.
If it makes it easier, pretend that EA is the one doing this.
