U.Gamers Podcast #125: Downloadable content woes, featuring Star Wars Battlefront & Metal Gear Solid V

Jon has a bone to pick with the upcoming downloadable content release schedule for Star Wars Battlefront, and Cody debates with him whether Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain is guilty of DLC misdeeds.  Show Notes: * Photo credit: Marco Verch via Flickr * Jon recounts the tale of one man’s ridiculous customer service experience with Sony * Cody counter-points with some good customer service experiences he’s had with Sony, which somehow leads to Jon talking about a subscription he has that allows him to listen to old baseball games… which is completely pointless * Jon is not a fan of how difficult it is to unsubscribe from basically anything on the iTunes Store * Jon claims that if you get a “dumb” customer service representative, sometimes you can get totally screwed * Cody posits that stupidity isn’t the only thing that can affect your customer service experience, as many people are great and many people are just kind of terrible people * Jon and Cody argue about whether they’re even arguing at this point in the customer service conversation * They transition into downloadable content (DLC) discussion mode, starting with a reference to the atrocious DLC in Plants vs. Zombies 2: Garden Warfare * Jon gives a primer on the Battlefield video game series, since Star Wars Battlefront is essentially a Battlefield game and the third game in the Star Wars: Battlefront series * Jon explains the $50 Season Pass available to order pre-release, and why he thinks that’s too expensive and splits the player base too dramatically * Is the initial offering for the game too thin at $60 for a game that’s been in development for a very long time? Cody doesn’t think it is, and discusses with Jon * Cody discusses his history with the Call of Duty DLC map packs and how dissatisfied he was with the maps * Jon compares Destiny’s latest expansions to the price of the season pass to highlight its absurdity to him, and Cody argues why the content is “worth it” to some * In Cody’s world, it’s just as offensive to have spent $20 on a game like Gone Home as it is to spend fifty bucks on some DLC, then reminisces on his multiplayer days playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and 3 with his friends * Jon concedes that he is probably “just old” and seamlessly transitions into a discussion on in-app / in-game purchases, which seem a little more frightening * Cody helps enable the most seamless transition basically ever * Cody explains the online multiplayer in Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, including Forward Operating Bases (FOBs), your staff, R&D, and offense/defense when infiltrating bases in multiplayer mode * Jon is a fan… up until Cody starts talking about how you can buy insurance, using real-world money, to “insure” your virtual characters from being captured by online adversaries * The verdict is out regarding exactly whom is the target of the game...