The Nature of DLC Characters in the FGC


“Back in my day, we didn’t have DLC characters.” – Anyone who played fighting games in the 80s/90s, probably.

So, Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite is out. We’ve known for about five months that there would be a bunch of characters locked behind a DLC paywall. In the early days, of course, there were no DLC characters/content. Back then it wasn’t possible. So the argument could be made that it’s simply a sign of the times, to continue making money after the game is released. But are these free to play games and is corporate just trying to make a fair living? Or are these 60 dollar “AAA Gaemz” where they’re already making hundreds of thousands of dollars off the game, then making more because people will buy the new characters so they can be competitive?  You know the answer already. At least I can say it’s not like the Street Fighter x Tekken thing again or Marvel vs. Capcom 3 thing again. You know, where the DLC characters were already on the disc but beyond a paywall, so when it was time to release them you could spend money on them.

DLC Character Editorial - SFV

So, let’s look at the current (worst) offenders. Street Fighter V and Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite. As of right now, Street Fighter V has 12 DLC characters. And stages, and costumes. Now I do have to say that at least, in Street Fighter V you can unlock them with Fight Money, which comes at a less-than-ideal pace. This is a practice that would be fine if the game were free. The current plan is to keep creating content for SFV until 2020. So it’s going to have the biggest cast of a Street Fighter game ever. Can you even imagine how expensive that’s going to be? You can always buy the Season Pass, for each season that shows up. It sounds like an excuse to me though. If it were free-to-play, again, I’d have no complaints. But what Marvel vs. Capcom has done is offensive to me. We knew there’d be DLC, and people aren’t even batting an eye at it. At least six characters, but probably far more than that. That’s six characters, and the current roster is 24 characters, with an additional six on the way. So at least it has a bigger cast than Street Fighter V, huh? I just don’t understand how this pervasive mindset appeared. So I talked to someone who plays a lot of fighters, Bottom Tier’s resident FGC God, Takanub.

DLC Character Editorial - MVCI

He put it into a bit of perspective for me. He’s not 100% sure that this is all Capcom’s fault, all these DLC things. As far as Street Fighter V goes, Sony really wanted it out the door right now, then got furious that it was performing poorly. That doesn’t change all the DLC because that appears to be the plan all along. But as far as it going out without all the features that we were promised? That’s on Sony. As far as Marvel goes, despite the rumor of “The casual fans won’t remember X-Men characters”, which is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard, just look at that cast. They’re all basically MCU characters, and with more Marvel films on the way, they need it out right damn now for all those sweet MCU tie-ins. I love Capcom, have since I first played Megaman 2 and Bionic Commando. But I feel like this is the last gasp to find some serious success. And with their decision to put Mega Man out to pasture (Why? We miss you, Megaman). However, I do feel like an incredible hypocrite. That’s okay though because we’re people. I’m fine with one or two DLC characters. I draw the line when half or more of a cast will be extra money and will be tournament legal and to keep up, you’ll have to buy more characters. Tekken 7 has two planned. Geese Howard and someone else. I know that SSGSS Goku/Vegeta are DLC for Dragon Ball FighterZ. At least DBFZ will be a full, complete game that’s insanely good when it launches. I won’t have to wait a year for Arcade Mode. Or other features. There will always be people who just buy in no matter what, and that’s okay. But it’s up to us to speak out when something feels wrong, or greedy.

DLC Characters in the FGC - Infinity Eggs

The only other thing I really have to complain about is the shameful Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite Collector’s Edition. Trep, one of my good friends bought it, for the X Statue primarily. That’s the only statue that’s worth anything. Chun-Li looks like she’s strung out on heroin. Iron Man looks… kind of bronze. But the Infinity Gems are the part that upset me the most. They look like Easter Eggs filled with chocolate and candies. They are attached to the box, have a weird, pulsating glow, and don’t even look the same as they do on the box! I’ve never been more disappointed, but also glad I didn’t spend 200 bucks on it. It’s just such a frustrating economy that’s been created for AAA games. Between loot boxes that can literally have anything in them, and that whole Shadow of War debacle … greed is getting far too out of hand.

What do you guys think? Are you okay with DLC characters and loot boxes? Or do you feel like it’s a soulless cash grab? Let me know below!

Social Media :