The practice of releasing downloadable content has become incredibly normalized these past few console generations. Even games and series that wouldn't normally have DLC in the past now have them in droves. Developers often find themselves walking a very thin line when it comes to what is an acceptable DLC practice and what is not. Most try to push to boundaries based on what players are willing to pay for, but this comes at the risk of turning players off from the game.
Despite that, there is still no shortage of developers who produce DLC content for free that other developers would've happily charged money for. This is often to reward fans of a game or series and to ensure player retention. Giving enough free quality content will typically lead players to be more willing to spend on paid content to reward that developer.
10 Should've Been Free: Final Fantasy XV's Royal Pack
The entire history of Final Fantasy XV could be described as messy. While the game certainly has its passionate fans, there were plenty who walked away from the game disappointed. Director Hajime Tabata and his development team worked tirelessly in an attempt to win fans over. While free content was released for Final Fantasy XV, its most necessary piece of the puzzle was sold as a paid DLC.
The Royal Pack provided sweeping updates to the world of Eos. It allowed players to drive a boat to explore the waters, upgrade the Regalia to drive off-road, enable a new first-person camera option, and receive a powered-up version of the Armiger. On top of that, the final dungeon was overhauled to be much larger, complete with new story elements and boss battles (including an optional secret boss fight against a classic enemy). With how tumultuous Final Fantasy XV's development had been, releasing the Royal Pack for free would've gone a long way to winning players over.
9 Could've Been Paid: Gravity Rush 2's "Raven's Choice"
Gravity Rush 2 was an overlooked and forgotten gem. Released in 2017, the game was met with positive reviews, but low sales. Prior to the game's launch, Sony Japan Studio had already announced a DLC centering around Kat's former enemy turned ally Raven titled "Another Story The Ark of Time – Raven’s Choice."
When the game was originally delayed, however, Sony Japan Studio decided that the DLC would be released for free to make up for that delay. While the DLC was fairly short, the story tied up a plot thread leftover from the original game. Something fans of the series would've had no issues paying for.
8 Should've Been Free: The Last Of Us' Grounded Difficulty
Over the years, players have grown accustomed to unlocking higher difficulty settings by either beating the game once or beating the game on a certain difficulty. Naughty Dog attempted to change that in the PlayStation 3 version of their classic title The Last of Us by releasing its most difficult setting, Grounded, for $4.99. On top of that, two new trophies were included for completing the game on Grounded and Grounded+ (the New Game Plus version) leading many trophy hunters to purchase Grounded in order to regain their 100% completion.
Naughty Dog would since learn from the errors of their way by releasing both Grounded difficulty and a new Permadeath mode for free in The Last of Us: Part II.
7 Could've Been Paid: All Of Shovel Knight's Expansions
There might not be a more generous developer than Yacht Club Games with their Shovel Knight series. From its initial debut as a Kickstarter campaign, Yacht Club Games promised a treasure trove of post-launch content. Among those include multiple story campaigns titled "Plague of Shadows," "Spector of Torment," and "King of Cards." Each campaign clocks in at a longer playtime compared to the original Shovel Knight and could almost be considered as standalone games themselves.
These were originally a part of the Treasure Trove edition of the game, but older versions of the game have since been able to update to Treasure Trove for free. Thus, any Shovel Knight player will be able to access each of these campaigns free of charge, making Shovel Knight one of the best value for money purchases out there.
6 Should've Been Free: Mortal Kombat 11's "Aftermath"
One of the biggest cardinal sins of DLC is withholding extremely important story elements and releasing them in the form of paid DLC. While Mortal Kombat 11's base story works fine as a standalone, "Aftermath" tags an extra three hours at the end of the six-hour main story. Meaning roughly a third of Mortal Kombat 11's complete story requires a paid DLC purchase.
The "Aftermath" DLC does come with Fujin, Sheeva, and Robocop as playable characters. For many, that alone may be enough to justify the price. However, that doesn't excuse the fact that the "Aftermath" story should've been free for all players.
5 Could've Been Paid: The Witcher 3's Free Content
Many players like to point to CD Projekt Red for how AAA developers should handle DLC. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt released a blend of paid and free content. The paid content was in the form of two significant expansions, while the free content was enough to keep players invested in the world of The Witcher. Among the free content include new quests and contracts for Geralt to take on, each living up to the quality set by those in the base game.
If CD Projekt Red could follow a similar framework, or even improve on it, for Cyberpunk 2077, maybe the game will be worth a second chance.
4 Should've Been Free: Life Is Strange: Before the Storm's "Farewell"
This entry is a little different from the others as Life is Strange: Before the Storm's "Farewell" episode is not available for individual purchase. It's only made available for players who purchased the Deluxe Edition of the game. The episode brings closure to Max and Chloe's choice-driven story by telling a tale set in their young childhood prior to Max moving from Arcadia Bay.
When the trophy and achievement list was unveiled for the game, there was a trophy for completing this episode., meaning those who sought 100% and that coveted platinum trophy could only do so by purchasing the Deluxe Edition. Square Enix later changed the requirements for the trophy, but it leaves many wondering if "Farewell" was originally meant to be included with the season pass. Either way, it should have been made available for free for owners of the game.
3 Could've Been Paid: Minecraft's Major Updates
Minecraft has grown to become one of the biggest success stories in the history of gaming. From its very humble beginnings to becoming a worldwide phenomenon, the game has spawned numerous spinoffs, an upcoming film, and even a playable appearance in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. It would've been easy for Mojang Games to take full advantage of the game's popularity by restricting new additions behind a paywall, and many players would've had no problem paying, but that wasn't the case. Every major update to the game has been released for free.
While there is still paid content for Minecraft, players have received a consistent stream of free content that continues to breathe new life into the game to this day.
2 Should've Been Free: Street Fighter X Tekken's Infamous On-Disc DLC
One of the most infamous DLC incidents comes from Street Fighter X Tekken. The highly-anticipated crossover between the two iconic fighting franchises was quickly met with apprehension at release. Capcom had previously announced that 12 DLC fighters would be released after launch and would be included in the PlayStation Vita version of the game. Through data mining, players would learn that those 12 characters were already completed and already built into the code, meaning they could've been included in the base roster.
Capcom would sell the DLC pack for $19.99, which was met with significant backlash. Many believe this directly impacted the game's sales numbers, which in turn put the sibling game Tekken X Street Fighter in doubt.
1 Could've Been Paid: Overwatch's Characters And Stages
It had grown to become commonplace for games to release additional characters and stages for a price. The popular multiplayer hero shooter Overwatch took a different approach. Prior to its release, Activision-Blizzard announced that all future heroes and maps would be free of charge, which has continued to be the case. The fighting genre has proved fans are willing to pay for characters and stages, so it's refreshing to see a more consumer-friendly approach.
In addition, players of the original game will eventually be able to transition to Overwatch 2's PVP multiplayer free of charge as the games will share matchmaking lobbies.