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In the modern video game industry, it has become common practice to offer paid downloadable content and Season Passes to players for the games that publishers sell. This is a practice that has long been criticized by many within the gaming community as harmful to the consumers. Nintendo is about to add fuel to the fire by not only participating in the practice but also breaking tradition with the planned Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild DLC.
Nintendo recently announced a Season Pass to come with its upcoming title, which seems to have dampened the enthusiasm of many of its fans. The latest installment of the legendary franchise is one of the most highly anticipated games of the year and is one of the primary reasons why customers are even considering buying the Nintendo Switch console. As Technobuffalo notes, the company’s motives behind the addition of DLCs and the Season Pass is only understandable.
The publication points out that whether gamers like it or not, DLCs have become an integral part of the video game industry because of how it extends a particular title’s playtime and how it reduces the habit of returning used games to stores like GameStop, which is terrible for profit. However, Season Passes can be detrimental for gamers simply because it’s asking for blind trust.
Season Passes is asking players to pay for something that they have yet to see or know anything concrete about, thus preventing them from making an informed decision. In comparison, consumers can purchase DLCs once they come out and gamers know a little bit more about them, which is only fair.
Then again, Nintendo is clearly only following the trend that other companies have set, and which gamers seem to endorse with their wallets. It’s simply a logical business move for a video game company that seems to be losing steam, which explains why it is willing to make this kind of decision.
In any case, the Season Pass for Breath of the Wild will cost gamers $19.99, Gamasutra reports. It will reportedly contain a new difficulty setting, a new mission, and a number of bonus products.
