I honestly don't understand just why people whine so much about day 1 DLC. They complain that it is something that is already on the disc, or that the devs should take more time making the game and less on DLC. It seems that people have forgotten two major factors:

1) A game goes "gold" several months before it is actually released. A good example is Halo: Reach. While it did not have Day 1 DLC, it did go gold in June, if I am correct, and came out in September, a few months later. Meaning, Bungie finished the game completely, and started making copies. They had a good 3 months to sit around and do nothing. In this time of 2-4 months that most developers go through, they usually don't want to sit around and do nothing. They go over code, perfect a day 1 patch in case of problems, and work on new content. Day 1 DLC is usually comething short and simple created in this span of a few months, which is completely ample time to create new content.

2) You don't have to buy it. This was the biggest case that I noticed over Portal 2 on Reddit. Many whined about the hats and all of those day 1 DLC items, but they shouldn't really care, as they are not required to buy it. For example, why would a man cry over buying candy when there is no reason that they need it? It would be nice to have a candy bar, but it isn't necessary, and doesn't really affect any of us. It's a commodity that has low demand and infinite supply, so why freak out?

Day 1 DLC is nothing more than a benefit that we can choose to purchase or add to our games. We should be thanking the developers for Day 1 DLC, as they are finished with a game, and their job is over, yet they go out after they finish it and make even more content for us to experience, whether it be a new 5 minute map, or a funny hat for our evil warlord to wear. While maybe not all Day 1 DLC is following the rules (looking at suspicious games with hundreds of day 1 items), they generally follow these rules of being made late and mimimally supporting a game. You don't have to have it, but it is a fun addition that the developers kindly went out of their way to make for their loving consumer base.

Just my 2 cents.

This was originally a response to the editorial on Black Ops that I just read, but since it was too long to post there, I'm posting it here.

*AHEM*

"I tried a few rounds, didn't really enjoy it as much as MW. MW2 was a disappointment to me, in my opinion, too much flash, buggy substance. I guess I'm more of a slower-paced guy. ACB's multiplayer is quite fun.

But the only problem I have with Call of Duty now (even though I thoroughly have enjoyed the campaigns, despite how over the top they are), is that too many other companies are trying to create CoD clones.

CoD might be good, but the fact that it has so many clones means that people are seeing it as the epitome of gaming. And it's not. Far from it, too.

We won't reach that threshold for a while, and CoD's success is also becoming a burden on the industry. Look at the list of the biggest hyped games of this year. Halo Reach, LBP2, ACB, CoD:BO, BFBC2, ME2, WoW:Cata, SC2... sequels. All of them.

With the exception of Red Dead Redemption, this year has been full of AAA titles that are all sequels. Very few people are taking a risk in creating a new franchise. And therein lies the problem.

Too many people are vying for the control of the money in the market (which is a lot of money, a lot of money can be made off of the market), and too few are trying to one-up Call of Duty, Halo, WoW, or Starcraft. Too many try to emulate them and add this or that as new features.

The last few years have been a stalemate (in my opinion). Sure, many great games have come out, but few new IPs have risen. Mass Effect, Assassin's Creed, Bioshock and LittleBigPlanet are some of the only (big) original games to come out of the last few years, and they all helped revolutionize the industry. But each are now sequel-blockbuster-esque games. Even Bioshock Infinite has nothing to do with Bioshock, and is "Cashing in" on Bioshock. Halo Reach could have been called "Reach", had nothing to do with halo, and given the covenant a re-skin, and it would have sold nothing close to what it did. Great games, yes, but tagging a name with it seems to stalemate the industry.

But now, I can't find very many promising new IPs coming out. Sequels all look good (Portal 2!!!!), but I feel a lack in games that are trying to be better than modern games while retaining fresh-newness and originality. Medal of Honor, I'm looking at you. Bad dog."