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Valve Bringing Team Fortress 2 Updates to Xbox 360, Being Forced to Charge Gamers
by Chris Faylor, Aug 22, 2008 9:05am PDTWhile PC gamers have enjoyed frequent and free game-expanding updates to Team Fortress 2, including new modes and maps, console players of the class-based multiplayer shooter haven't been as fortunate.
That will change later this year when developer Valve releases a comprehensive collection of the updates as downloadable content for the Xbox 360 version, marketing VP Doug Lombardi informed Kotaku.
Left, Arena Mode. Right, the Payload map Goldrush.
Though the updates were free on PC, Valve affirmed it is being forced to charge for the Xbox 360 release, which is why the studio waited until it had an abundance of content.
Pricing has yet to be determined, though Lombardi explained that the company is hoping to sell the content for as low as it can, ideally around $10. In keeping with his earlier comments, the executive was unsure if the pack will hit PlayStation 3.
Included in the collection are two new modes--Payload and Arena--along with new weapons for the Heavy, Pyro and Medic classes and a number of new maps.
Comments
The certification process is there to keep there from being four patches in one day.
I think the problem here lies with how Valve is pushing out multiple updates to TF2 that incrementally change the gameplay. Maybe they feel these don't warrant a pay price. Maybe it would be better for Valve to save all of this for one big DLC patch.
The problem here is Valve has a digital distribution method that THEY control and that THEY set the rules on. They want to be able to do that same procedure on Microsoft's platform, and it doesn't work as well. Frankly, I played TF2 on the 360, and it's great. I wish they had these patches, but at the same time I know there are all these stipulations for achievements and certification that Microsoft has in place. Valve got an exemption for the Orange Box as far as achievements go because of the number of games included on that disc. I bet another hang-up is the fact that each of these patches are pushing additional achievements. While that's great on the PC side, this is another hang-up on the Valve can do it their way on Steam but has to do it Microsoft's way on XBOX Live.
I don't think it is as clear-cut as Microsoft doesn't want ANY free DLC.
Even a nominal $5 charge for a complete DLC after they finally finish Team Fortress 2 wouldn't be a huge deal, it might even spur new sales of the game.
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 9 replies.
Remember, Microsoft owns XBL and a lot of people don't seem to understand the degree of control they have over it. That not only includes them having final say on pricing but also a ton of requirements as far as certification goes. This is not the same as a developer putting up a patch or some additional content on their web site because at the end of the day they have zero control over distribution.
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