I'm thinking specifically of GTA 4 right now, but it applies on a more general scale as well.
The story as we're lead to believe is that GTA 4 is to be released for XBox 360 and PS3, with episodic content being added after you buy it, presumably using whatever macropayment scheme your console supports. This episodic content is going to be different depending on which console you buy it on.
Now the reasoning behind this is that you will buy the game for both consoles, to be able to play both versions. My question is that, outside the wet dreams of Sony and Microsoft executives, where else is this likely to be a reasonable scenario? Who on earth is likely to buy the same game twice (never mind quite possibly an extra console to play ti on), or taken to the extreme, who's going to buy half a game, once?
This was spurred on by the outcry regarding the songs from the original Guitar Hero on the PS2, costing 2.5 times as much on Live($100 USD vs. $40 USD).
So what's the verdict? "Exclusive" episodic content, brilliant marketing, or shameless ripoff? Also do you think it's going to have any impact on games that use a less differential approach to episodic content (Half-Life 2 and Sam & Max for instance).
The story as we're lead to believe is that GTA 4 is to be released for XBox 360 and PS3, with episodic content being added after you buy it, presumably using whatever macropayment scheme your console supports. This episodic content is going to be different depending on which console you buy it on.
Now the reasoning behind this is that you will buy the game for both consoles, to be able to play both versions. My question is that, outside the wet dreams of Sony and Microsoft executives, where else is this likely to be a reasonable scenario? Who on earth is likely to buy the same game twice (never mind quite possibly an extra console to play ti on), or taken to the extreme, who's going to buy half a game, once?
This was spurred on by the outcry regarding the songs from the original Guitar Hero on the PS2, costing 2.5 times as much on Live($100 USD vs. $40 USD).
So what's the verdict? "Exclusive" episodic content, brilliant marketing, or shameless ripoff? Also do you think it's going to have any impact on games that use a less differential approach to episodic content (Half-Life 2 and Sam & Max for instance).