Larian Studios Forums Divinity: Original Sin 2 Divinity - Original Sin 2 - General Is DLC something Larian would be open to?

With the early access having been announced I logged into Larian Vault to see if keys for the Steam early access were available yet and was reminded of my vote for Bard skill tree. Sadly while it looks like we won't be seeing any bard play in DOS:2 I'm still trying to stay hopeful!

Traditionally it seems Larian isn't too big on DLC (which I respect) but seeing as how Bairdotr and Wolgraff found their way into the the original title after the fact, I was hoping that down the line additional content for DOS:2 could possibly be added?

It's still far too early for the team to be worrying about additional content given that they're still finishing the core experience of DOS:2 so I'm sure there won't be any definitive answers here (if any) but the "Game Master Mode" stretch goal was met on the kickstarter so adding additional content for players to putz around with could be interesting I think. Plus as someone with a combined 200+ hours between DOS and DOS:EE I'm definitely looking forward to the Game Master Mode to give me even more play time in DOS2 haha.

Cheers Larian!

Currently the focus is on the game, and there are no plans for additional content via DLC. It is possible after release there may be the desire, or an excuse, to add more, or it may more sense to direct new content creation towards the next game.

Haha even though I kind of knew that would be the answer, I still appreciate you taking the time out to post it (in two places even)!

I'm looking forward to seeing what awesome and fun new content you guys have in store for us in DOS:2!

DLC would be a reason, for me, to not buy Divinity games anymore. Complete reasonable priced Addons or nothing.

My hope would be for a solid expansion with new campaign, While we wait for D:OS3

I was about to buy Deus Ex: Mankind Divided, but the I saw reviews on Steam complaining about the DLC. Not only did they have single-player microtransactions, but they had DLC that could only be redeemed once! That is, you pay for the DLC to add an extra mission to your game, and you could only use this in one save game. If you wanted to play it again during another play through, you'd have to pay again!

Apparently they changed this after some backlash, but it's pretty shocking what some publishers will try to get away with. I'll probably still buy it later, but I plan to wait until it's on sale.

Anyway, CD Projekt Red and Witcher 3 are certainly the model to emulate. I would happily pay for a substantial expansion.

I guess it depends what the DLC looks like: I mean there was Flames of Vengeance, although I guess that's in "major expansion" sort of territory; and I guess requires the sort of effort that they'd rather put into a new game.

But I would be a lot less keen to see an EA style "pay us a fiver for a new pair of trousers" release programme that's given DLC a bit of a bad name.

DLC of expansion-like size = good DLC.

The idea that DLC = microtransactions is nonsensical.

See also MY thread.
http://larian.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=583200

Seeing as we've already had a thread about DLC, I would happily turn this into a thread about bashing EA.

that might not make sense b/c dlc can also be reasonable priced

if you buy a game and are satisfied with what you bought why not enhance the product for a reasonable price?

of course selling dlc only to screw up the price (ie the content of the dlc should have been in the original product for its original price and was cut just in order to sell it separately) is ****
but if the original produrct is worth the money and a dlc is worth the money, where is the issue?

Small DLCs as we now them from certain companies are a (quite efficient) instrument of profit maximization, not of enhancing the product. Small improvements to the product should be considered service and thanks for buying it and not destroy its unity by making additional pieces exclusive to pay-willing people. Bigger improvements and additions that require a higher amount of resource investment for developers/publishers should be sold as once so called Add-Ons or Expansions to a fair price. There is absolutely no reason (but greed for profit or, in a few cases, existential threat) to SELL small DLCs.

following your logic i would just collect some of your small improvements put them in an future add-on and charge a little bit more for that add-on. I am sure nobody could tell the difference and the outcome is the same apart from not being able to choose what somebody actually wants to buy - only the whole package for the "whole price" available.

Sure, why not? Still much better than microtransactions.

But a good expansion for a good game is something I'd buy without hesitation or regret.

and what exactly is the difference between selling a bundle instead of "small increments" all for the same price, ie individually pricing of dls vs a price that represents the sum of all dlc-prices?

That doesn't follow from my logic. That would be the same DLC logic I criticized, regarding the intention and the quality. And I'm sure a group of players does notice if an Add-On is a serious attempt to extend, alter or overall improve the game or just an alibi to earn more money.
What my mods offer wouldn't be more than a package of features that should have been implemented by patches (if they were considered necessary) or by EE as a small part of the whole.

I think the problem is that the small bite-sized odds-and-ends of the type that EA release quickly add up in price but the content doesn't add up to an actual expansion: they're so often just a few random bits and pieces that in some cases were probably pared off the base game. Some stuff like DA Oranges' Feastday Gifts, Return to Ostagar and so on quickly added up to the cost of a full expansion but contained rather less content than something like, say, Shivering Isles, Flames of Vengeance or indeed DA:O's own Awakening.

Although one could say it's up to players whether or not they want to pay for stuff and if they do, good luck to them, I think it's not good for the rest of us if an increasing amount of content is being artificially taken out of the main game to be sold separately or day-one exclusives and so on, it just diminishes the experience unless people are prepared to keep on opening their wallet. I dunno, bad analogy alert, but if I went to a restaurant I would expect to pay extra for a dessert, but I wouldn't expect to pay extra for condiments, nor for use of the cutlery, and extra again for a napkin, and a chair hire charge.

you did not understand: i would make a "normal add on" (in your terms) and just include also dlc-content. and for that package i would charge <price of add on> + <price of all dlcs (maybe a small discount>. and for sure nobody would notice because nobody knew that i put dlc-content into the add-on and nobody knew what the "only-add-on-price" would have been.

i would say that is the way normal add-ons are made btw, b/c the price of a product is ultimately made up of the costs of all parts, including features that could have been sold as small dlc

Why should you think in terms of DLC-content to integrate when you make an expansion, unless you created small content you don't want to integrate via patches for free?
I mean: Why imaginary separating the whole into DLC-pieces and calculating the price based on possible prices for parts of your expansion's content? That's a very capitalistic logic, and Larian Studios is a good step away from that (which does not mean they don't calculate).

DLC and Expansion pack, nowadays, are synonyms. After all, you don't really believe that an expansion pack would be marketed as such on Steam? It would be in the DLC tab.

Expansion Packs are Downloadable Content but thinking about DLC most people think at smaller content packs. Like the original Wolfgraff and Bairdotr DLC. (It was Free, so no bitching about that.) Or the typical "Get one new Horse Armor for just 4,99€!" DLC.

An Expansion massively expands the game with new Areas and normally a new chapter of the storyline. It's not just random piece and bits but an actual playable hour-long new adventure with new enemies, content and probably improved game mechanics. Think about the bigger Skyrim, Age of Wonders 3 or ARMA 3 DLC's. We should clearly sepperate that from the normal DLC and just call it expansions.