If anyone plays Halo 2...

A patch/update just came out on Live recently that tweaked multiplayer gameplay a bit. Also, some new maps to download have been released.

Of the new maps, two are free, two are $5.99 for the pair, but are scheduled to become free I think June 28th if I remember right.

they charge fer the freakin maps??!! *sigh* yet another reason why xbox is lame. I can't name one time where I'd have to pay for a single map/map-pack for any game I own on PC. you paid the money for the game so why . . . nvm. I stopped tryin to understand console logic a long time ago.

Man, I think I would wait until they were free. You have to pay to play on Live dont you?

I like how PC patches are free

the guys over at redvsblue.com released some walkthroughs on the new maps if you want to check them out (also watch redvsblue as its hilarious)

It does cost money for a Live subscription, but it only works out to about $4.17 a month and is for all Xbox Live enabled games.

I don't really see anything wrong with charging a few bucks for some extra content. It's basically the same type of structure that Guild Wars is going to have and people are raving about how it's such a good game/business model. (I think it's good, too.) Not to mention the two pay maps will be free if you wait a little while and the update and other maps are already free.

There are some ways in which Live type multiplayer gaming tends to be superior to the typical PC multiplayer environment as well. Such as virtually everyone having a headset, matched opponents and team mates based on skill level, much quicker to jump in and get into a game, drastically less cheating, etc.

John G said:

It does cost money for a Live subscription, but it only works out to about $4.17 a month and is for all Xbox Live enabled games.

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Really, It only $4.17 a month? Thats not too bad. I thought it was like $20.

It's probably pointless to buy the maps now...because they'll all be free eventually (I think there were like 9 in total coming out)

the newest paid 2 will be free june 28, on that day, 5 more maps come out. They are charging 11.99 for all 5. By the end of the summer all 9 will be free. Personally, for such a great game, i have no prob spending 5.99 for 2 and 11.99 for 5. No big deal to me.

_l4st_chanC3__ said:

they charge fer the freakin maps??!! *sigh* yet another reason why xbox is lame. I can't name one time where I'd have to pay for a single map/map-pack for any game I own on PC. you paid the money for the game so why . . . nvm. I stopped tryin to understand console logic a long time ago.

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At least it is only $5.99. It's not like paying $39.99+ for an expansion pack for your pc game.

Though, I agree it sucks. I like free stuff.

Superjed said:

Really, It only $4.17 a month? Thats not too bad. I thought it was like $20.

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What you typically end up with is a one year subscription for $49.99. It's a pretty reasonable deal overall. You can pay in smaller chunks too, but it costs a few more pennies in the long run.


Whether or not its a good deal to pay for maps to get them early just depends on how much you like and play the game. For an occasional player it's probably better to just wait. For a Halo 2 fiend, it's absolutely worth it to help keep their favorite game fresh, new, and more diverse.

Personally, I think this is one of the best business models for a game...initially pay for the game, then slowly buy extra content cafeterial style IF you want it. If you happen to like the game, it's well worth it. If you never really got into the game much you just pass. Expecting everything to be free just isn't realistic and generally won't net very good content anyway. I'd rather pay a couple bucks for several GOOD, well tested and balanced maps that are fair and bug free than a handfull of half baked maps that are doled out for free because they won't spend much money on development. There are always exceptions like Blizzard who tends to provide a lot of quality free support, but you wouldn't even see it out of them if they weren't so successful overall. Good content is not free...someone pays for it somewhere.

Though I would love to agree with you, getting stuff free is NOT realistic. In fact, if you own a PC and any PC game at all, free extra content is almost a known fact. Developers are just known to release extra content after a game is released. Perfect example is the Unreal series. Any game in this franchise has had at least two bonus packs, new maps, new chars . . . and every bit of that extra content was free. And 99% of the time, the quality of this content is top-notch. Perphaps the greatest benefit of owning a PC however is that you can take advantage of the countless user-created mods, maps, etc that are available. A lot of the time this content is just as good if not better then what the developer can come up with. And none of it costs a dime.

Just my .02.

I do own and game on PC. I know what you're talking about, but typically only the best, most popular games release much meaningful content for free. The price of which is paid for by continued game sales (PC titles tend to have a more extended, but less explosive shelf life) and by customer loyalty on the next title released or expansion pack.

Speaking of expansion packs... There sure are a lot of them on PC compared to consoles...and they do cost money...often times as much as the original release. Looks like they actually do charge for extra content.

User created content is a good thing and a big advantage on PC. However, this will likely become a feature of console games in the future as well. Microsoft leadership has been talking a lot about making it a big part of Xbox 360 and the new Live.

maybe user created stuff will become mainstream but as of right now, xdk is still strictly controlled and homebrew is not popular, i suspect you would need some at least scaled down form of xdk to make any sort of mainstream usercreated conted