Bleszinski: On-disc DLC an "unfortunate reality" for industry
On-disc DLC will remain until games become fully downloadable says Gears of War designer
As the games industry continues to transition from retail to digital, some gamers gamers are starting to react negatively to a rising business practice of turning on-disc content into DLC. That sentiment has rung true with Cliff Bleszinski of Epic Games, who says the practice is "an unfortunate reality" for the industry.
"When you're making a game, and you're getting into a ship cycle, there's often three or four months where the game is basically done. And you have an idle team that needs to be working on things," he said to GameSpot.
"And often for compatibility issues, [on] day one, some of that content does need to be on-disc. It's an ugly truth of the gaming industry. I'm not the biggest fan of having to do it, but it is one of the unfortunate realities."
Bleszinski added that a solution may be possible in fully downloadable titles. Digital distribution would ultimately remove the necessity for such actions, as gamers would then be able to purchase games piecemeal, rather than be forced to pay for content through DLC means.
"If we can get to fully downloadable games, then you can just buy a $30 horror game and just have it, and that stuff will thankfully go away," he reflected.