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Forums - Microsoft - Why does Microsoft rely on timed exclusive DLC so much?

S.T.A.G.E. on 20 August 2013
Munkeh111 said:
S.T.A.G.E. said:
Munkeh111 said:
They have LOADS of money.

They have tried to invest in their internal studios, but that will take time and buying exclusives outright is too expensive. Instead, they are trying to get every little advantage they can.

They also need to improve in Europe, hence their FIFA tie-up.

But I have said this before, I find either side buying up tiny bits of exclusive content really annoying


I am willing to bet Microsoft has spent nearly 2-3 billion on third party games DLC, Perks, timed exclusivity, or exclusivity.

Definitely not quite billion, but they did reportedly spend $50m on timed exclusive GTA IV DLC and the same again for Titanfall timed exclusivity

There is a lot of money changing hands here


I mean this doesn't affect me because I don't fall for the trap of the annualized games but this is evil genius if I ever saw it. Just give EA, Activision, Capcom, the NFL, OPRAH, Lifetime, SpikeTV, Geriatricsonline and everyone under the sun cash to get people over to their preorders. 



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badgenome on 20 August 2013

Because (a) it's cheaper than buying full exclusivity, and (b) their goal is to degrade the consumer experience on other platforms rather than to improve the experience on their platform.



S.T.A.G.E. on 20 August 2013
RolStoppable said:
Because competition makes everything better.


I think thats where actual exclusives come in.



qmoney88 on 20 August 2013
Munkeh111 said:
They have LOADS of money.

They have tried to invest in their internal studios, but that will take time and buying exclusives outright is too expensive. Instead, they are trying to get every little advantage they can.

They also need to improve in Europe, hence their FIFA tie-up.

But I have said this before, I find either side buying up tiny bits of exclusive content really annoying

I completely agree with this sentiment, it is entirely too annoying.  I mean, its not too big a deal for those who plan on purchasing both systems as I do, but I am in the vast minority when it comes to this, and even with owning both you still may not get to play the game on your preferred system of choice if you want the full experience.  Most of my friends are sony gamers, so I would prefer to purchase most if not all of my third party games on the ps4 meaning I still miss out on this content despite owning both.  This shit is so weak, just make more exclusive GAMES.



 PROUD MEMBER OF THE  PLAYSTATION 3 : RPG FAN CLUB

Figgycal on 20 August 2013
MB1025 said:
Mmmfishtacos said:
Jay it dosnt work, and people like me avoid buying dlc that does this. Ill just move on to a new game. No big deal.


These companies have numbers to back up their claim. Why do you think it happens all the time? What is your proof?


Look at the sales of Call of Duty games before and after the exclusivity deal and GTA 4 for 360 and for PS3. Ps3 got Battlefield map packs 1 week early and PS3 got exclusive DLC for Portal 2. It doesn't make a difference. It just makes people who own the other console upset that they're paying for a lesser product.



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Munkeh111 on 20 August 2013
qmoney88 said:
Munkeh111 said:
They have LOADS of money.

They have tried to invest in their internal studios, but that will take time and buying exclusives outright is too expensive. Instead, they are trying to get every little advantage they can.

They also need to improve in Europe, hence their FIFA tie-up.

But I have said this before, I find either side buying up tiny bits of exclusive content really annoying

I completely agree with this sentiment, it is entirely too annoying.  I mean, its not too big a deal for those who plan on purchasing both systems as I do, but I am in the vast minority when it comes to this, and even with owning both you still may not get to play the game on your preferred system of choice if you want the full experience.  Most of my friends are sony gamers, so I would prefer to purchase most if not all of my third party games on the ps4 meaning I still miss out on this content despite owning both.  This shit is so weak, just make more exclusive GAMES.

I too have both consoles, but the more annoying thing to me is all the codes you have to enter when you start the game. When I got AC III, there were at least 5 different codes that I needed to enter to get all my "exclusive content" and I forgot to actually activate my hour of extra stuff for the PS3. It just really doesn't matter and doesn't really sell any extra copies. It is a waste of time and money



the2real4mafol on 20 August 2013

If exclusive content sold people then we should all really invest in gaming PC's since all the extra content (mods) is free and you can make it yourself if you want.



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qmoney88 on 20 August 2013
Munkeh111 said:
qmoney88 said:
Munkeh111 said:
They have LOADS of money.

They have tried to invest in their internal studios, but that will take time and buying exclusives outright is too expensive. Instead, they are trying to get every little advantage they can.

They also need to improve in Europe, hence their FIFA tie-up.

But I have said this before, I find either side buying up tiny bits of exclusive content really annoying

I completely agree with this sentiment, it is entirely too annoying.  I mean, its not too big a deal for those who plan on purchasing both systems as I do, but I am in the vast minority when it comes to this, and even with owning both you still may not get to play the game on your preferred system of choice if you want the full experience.  Most of my friends are sony gamers, so I would prefer to purchase most if not all of my third party games on the ps4 meaning I still miss out on this content despite owning both.  This shit is so weak, just make more exclusive GAMES.

I too have both consoles, but the more annoying thing to me is all the codes you have to enter when you start the game. When I got AC III, there were at least 5 different codes that I needed to enter to get all my "exclusive content" and I forgot to actually activate my hour of extra stuff for the PS3. It just really doesn't matter and doesn't really sell any extra copies. It is a waste of time and money

Ya, that is incredibly annoying, and I agree completely, it is a massive waste of time and resources.  The only exclusive that Microsoft announced today that makes any kind of sense is the bundling of FIFA 14 which will likely be a huge deal, but thats an entire game.  That is madness too, 5 different codes is absolutely ridiculous, my god this shit has got to stop.



 PROUD MEMBER OF THE  PLAYSTATION 3 : RPG FAN CLUB

endimion on 20 August 2013
the2real4mafol said:

I mean COD Ghosts, Battlefield 4, FIFA 14 and now the Division have their DLC coming first on Xbox One. I don't know about you lot but i see this as a waste of money, knowing the DLC will make to other systems within time. Instead of giving money to 3rd party developers to secure early content, why not just fund more exclusive games? 



I don't really care about those games beside FIFA 14..... but I know that DLC is a big money maker for MS.... so if they do it, it must have a commercial advantage.... and it proabably doesn't cost them that much in comparaison to what they gain from such a deal....



The Fury on 20 August 2013
qmoney88 said:

I completely agree with this sentiment, it is entirely too annoying.  I mean, its not too big a deal for those who plan on purchasing both systems as I do, but I am in the vast minority when it comes to this, and even with owning both you still may not get to play the game on your preferred system of choice if you want the full experience.  Most of my friends are sony gamers, so I would prefer to purchase most if not all of my third party games on the ps4 meaning I still miss out on this content despite owning both.  This shit is so weak, just make more exclusive GAMES.

Well said, it's one thing I just don't get. Why spend potentially millions on content when that content will come to the console anyway. Why not invest that money on say a team of developers to make games instead. Then instead of having the same stuff as the competition just slightly earlier, you have different content entirely. More games is better than random content slightly early.



Hmm, pie.