What's up with the DLCs nower days...

Remember back when you actually got the whole package for the price you paid. There was none of this stupid DLC business. That's the biggest issue I have with next-gen consoles. Due to their online markets, different companies can exploit their loyal customers by releasing overpriced DLCs for games which usually aren't even worthy of the initial retail price.

For example - we all know that Activision are abusing this facility as they specifically release Call of Duty games with minimal maps, and then they hope to gain large revenue through the various map packs, usually consisting of 4 or 5 poorly designed maps. The worst thing is that people are actually prepared to go ahead with the purchase.

So overall, I think DLC is just pointless. The only case where I think it's good is if the game at hand requires DLCs (i.e. World of Warcraft) to extend the experience. Map packs don't extend the experience. You're just getting perhaps an extra hour of freshness, and soon you're interest span will decrease, rendering the DLC useless.

Very few games have got the DLCs right: GTA IV, World of Warcraft (also known as expansion packs rather than DLC) and Mass Effect. The DLCs actually added pretty substantial stuff to make the game much longer.

So what's your opinion of downloadable content? Is it just another gateway for big corporations to milk our wallets dry or do these so-called extensions actually promote themselves as being viable pieces of software?