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Downloadable Content
Downloadable content, or DLC, is video game data that is downloaded into the game that wasn't there originally. Examples include new levels, items, characters, and so forth. DLC was originally the exclusive domain of PC gaming, but every current game system (even the DSi, to a limited extent) now supports it. Downloadable content helps keep a game fresh and sometimes increases the replay value. It's generally small in size, so they are quick to download and install right away. Major exceptions to that are the Grand Theft Auto IV episodes (The Lost and Damned, and The Ballad of Gay Tony) which are much larger than just a single new level. Not too surprisingly, Rockstar made both episodes available for retail purchase in-stores, as a regular game disc.

Of course, DLC also has some controversy attached to it. Many a dedicated and knowledgeable gamer may crack the game to see what is stored in the disc, and they won't be too happy if they see that the DLC they got was already on the game to begin with, thus making the DLC pure Bribing Your Way to Victory. Another issue DLC brings up is pricing. It is subjective what content is worth paying for, but some gamers in general fear that game developers may use DLC as a way to milk more money out of their consumers by rushing the game (thus making it filled with bugs or missing content) and then charging people to get the rest of the good stuff. Also, DLC can often give a player a competitive advantage online, essentially forcing every player in the game to buy the DLC just to compete with other people who bought the DLC for exactly the same reason.

Downloadable content is also seen as a way of discouraging used game sales, since the person who buys the game used may have to pay again for the downloadable content or not be able to get it at all.

Of course, not all developers use DLC this way. Some do truly give brand new content without having to make people jump through hoops, and some even give these things away for no charge. At the same time though, some developers may force patches with new downloadable content and it may not sit well with people who don't want to upgrade their games from patching.

As with many things, many of the reasons and rationale on both sides can be ripe with knee jerk reactions. While it may be possible (and true) for a rare few developers to push out buggy games with less content in order to sell DLC, most are quite aware of one simple fact of video game life: Bad games don't sell enough to break even and make money (ie pay back the cost of development which will include paying off the publisher, advertising, retailers, etc). It's hard to sell DLC when the initial game does poorly. And in a somewhat hit-driven industry, putting out a bad game that doesn't make money can often mean the death sentence for all but the most well established developer. On the other hand, the rationale that game development has seen ever-inflating budgets may be true, the industry itself is at least partially to blame thanks having cultivated a bigger/better/newer mentality that continually tries to one-up itself without consideration for the logistics and reality that video games are one of the most expensive industries around. For instance, a typically AAA big budget title will likely have a budget around $50 million and take about 18 months to create. The typical time frame where a game will make the majority of its sales? Two weeks. That is well documented by industry organizations, whether for big hit or sleeper. Thus if a game doesn't make a splash in those first two weeks, it will likely never see the cost of development paid off in a reasonable amount of time to keep a studio alive. This puts intense pressure on studios to attract ever mercurial audiences to drop money on their title before the next big thing.

DLC has also been increasing the stakes in the Console Wars, as certain Multi Platform games on consoles only have DLC exclusively on one console, such examples including GTAIV's episodes (Which were originally 360 only), Batman: Arkham Asylum's Joker Challenge Rooms (PS3 only), and Fallout 3's DLC (originally 360/PC only, until the whole shebang was eventually released in a span of two weeks for the PS3). Some releases are merely timed, such as Fallout 3, but others aren't, such as Mirror's Edge. In some cases, DLC is free on some platforms but at a premium on others; Valve games like Team Fortress 2 and Left 4 Dead have free content updates on PC that must be bought on Xbox 360. This can come as a Regional Bonus of sorts, although extended to consoles; the long-awaited PS3 port of Mass Effect 2 contain 3 free DLC that Xbox and PC users have to pay for.

With the exception of the PC, where the vast majority of all DLC is user-made content and therefore free, DLC is a prime example of debateability. These complaints can become especially pointed when modding tools are omitted, access to mods from other platforms is denied, or online server browsers lock out mods. Mixes with New Media Are Evil when you encounter people who think DLC in general is pure evil and that all companies only care about ripping off its consumers for their games. Backlashes within the gaming community often occur (regardless of the content of the actual DLC), in the forms of Accentuate the Negative, Broken Base, Internet Backdraft, Unpleasable Fanbase, and many others are often seen when DLC is even discussed.

Compare Expansion Pack, Unlockable Content.

For products which are paid for and then downloaded in general see Digital Distribution.

Examples

  • Animal Crossing: City Folk has free DLC roughly once a month - furniture, clothing for your character, or a pattern you can use for clothing/wallpaper/etc. It usually has something to do with the season (pile of leaves, election poster, snowman hat) or Nintendo (Wii locker, DS Lite chair, Animal Crossing anniversary cake).
  • ARMA II: Operation Arrowhead
    • British Armed Forces ("BAF"): Adds high-resolution textures and higher-quality sounds for BAF characters and weapons (see below) and a campaign.
    • Private Military Company ("PMC"): Adds high-resolution textures and higher-quality sounds for PMC characters (see below) and a campaign, the sequel to BAF.
    • As of patch v1.57, the "units" (characters) and weapons from both DLC packs were added to Operation Arrowhead with low-resolution textures and lower sound quality, so that player-made missions could make use of those characters and weapons without requiring that the mission creator or player have the DLC.
  • Assassin's Creed II
    • Sequence 12: The Battle of Forli
    • Sequence 13: Bonfire of the Vanities
      • There are two versions of Sequence 13: One with 3 Templar secret locations (originally exclusive to the Collector’s Edition), and one without.
  • Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
    • Copernicus Conspiracy (PS3 only): Free, adds several single-player mission memories.
    • Animus Project Update 1.0: Free, adds a multiplayer mode (Advanced Alliance) and a new map (Mont St-Michel, day and nighttime versions); cannot be active at the same time as Animus Project Update 2.0.
    • Animus Project Update 2.0: Free, adds a multiplayer mode (Chest Capture) and a new map (Pienza, day and nighttime versions); cannot be active at the same time as Animus Project Update 1.0.
    • The Da Vinci Disappearance: Free on PC, paid on PS3 and Xbox 360; adds ten single-player missions (two were previously exclusive to collector's editions), two minigames, ten achievements/trophies, a new outfit (previously exclusive to Amazon.com pre-orders), two multiplayer modes (Assassinate and Escort), four multiplayer personas (Dama Rossa, Knight, Marquis and Pariah), and a new map (Alhambra).
  • Assassin's Creed: Revelations
    • Ancestors Character Pack (4 new multiplayer characters)
    • Mediterranean Traveller Map Pack (6 new multiplayer maps)
    • The Lost Archive (adds 2 new areas that explores the pasts of Lucy and Subject 16, plus some additional main game content, and 3 new multiplayer characters)
  • Assassins Creed III
    • The Tyranny of King Washington, a multi-episode What If? single-player story set after the American Revolution
    • Two single-player weapon/skin Pre-Order Bonus packs, including the "Captain of the Aquila" and "Colonial Assassin" packs
    • Two Pre-Order Bonus single-player missions, including "Lost Mayan Ruins" (Gamestop) and "Ghost of War" (Best Buy)
    • The Benedict Arnold Missions, a Playstation 3 exclusive set of four missions.
  • Asura's Wrath
    • Episode 11.5, an episode that takes place between episodes 11 and 12, animated by Studio 4°C.
    • Episode 15.5, another episode similar to the one above; takes place between episodes 15 and 16.
    • Part IV: Nirvana, which contains the last four episodes (19-22).
    • Lost Episodes 1 and 2, which are crossovers with Street Fighter.
  • Bastion has Stranger's Dream, which adds an additional trip to Who Knows Where in New Game Plus. It also adds a Score Attack Mode and No-Sweat Mode (easy mode).
  • Batman: Arkham Asylum
    • Play As The Joker Challenge Map (free, PS3 only).
    • Insane Night Challenge Map Pack (2 free new challenge maps)
    • Prey In The Darkness Map Pack (2 free new challenge maps)
    • Crime Alley Challenge Map
    • Dem Bones Challenge Map
  • Batman: Arkham City:
    • The Catwoman DLC, which shows the events of the game through Selina Kyle's perspective, along with alternate costumes for her. Also included extra challenge maps. Included free in new copies of the game, and available to buy separately otherwise.
    • The Nightwing DLC, which unlocks Dick Grayson for use in the game's challenge maps, and includes alternate costumes and two additional maps (Wayne Manor and Main Hall).
    • The Robin Pack, which unlocks Tim Drake for use in the game's challenge maps, and includes alternate costumes and two additional maps (Black Mask and Freight Train).
    • Batman Incorporated skin, released for free on all platforms.
    • The Skins Pack, which includes all alternate skins (previously pre-order bonuses) for Batman, including 1970's, Year One, Batman Beyond, The Dark Knight Returns, Sinestro Corps and Animated Series.
    • The Challenge Map Pack, which includes the Pre-Order Bonus maps Joker's Carnival and Iceberg Lounge, and a new map (Batcave).
    • Harley Quinn's Revenge, the final (story-based) DLC, which has Batman and Robin heading into the soon-to-be-decommissioned Arkham City to stop Harley Quinn from enacting a revenge plot. This expansion, and all of the prior DLC, was included on the Game of the Year edition.
  • Battlefield 3
    • Physical Warfare Pack: Several weapons and their attachments for use in multiplayer. Previously a preorder bonus, but now free to download.
    • Back to Karkand: Comes with four of the most popular maps from Battlefield 2 (Wake Island, Gulf of Oman, Sharqi Peninsula, and Strike at Karkand) remade in the Frostbite 2 engine and adds ten new weapons and three new vehicles from Battlefield 2. Free for owners of the Limited Edition. Release date: December 14, 2011.
    • Close Quarters: An expansion focused on close quarters combat. The maps take place mostly within building interiors, with an emphasis of cover and walls being shot to small pieces. Release Date: June 2012
    • Armored Kill: Big, open maps with plenty of new vehicles to take advantage of it, such as mobile artillery. Boasts having the "biggest map in Battlefield history." Release date: Fall 2012.
    • End Game: Info on this expansion is tightly sealed. Release date: Winter 2012.
  • Beautiful Katamari
    • Four different sets of Presents
    • Four different sets of Cousins
    • Special Accessory (which can also be unlocked by getting 100% Collection)
    • 7 new levels (all bought separately)
  • BioShock only has one add-on regardless of system: Ryan Industries Plasmids and Gene Tonics (Xbox 360 and PC), or Challenge Rooms (PS3).
  • BioShock 2
    • Sinclair Solutions Pack (expands multiplayer)
    • Kill 'em Kindly (free, adds a game mode for multiplayer)
    • Rapture Metro (adds 6 new maps for multiplayer; also contains Kill 'em Kindly)
    • Zigo and Blanche (characters for multiplayer)
    • The Protector’s Trials (challenges where you must protect Little Sisters with unique weapon and Plasmid load-outs)
    • Minerva's Den (3 new levels, a new main character, and reveals what happened to Tenenbaum)
  • BlazBlue: Continuum Shift
  • Blue Dragon
    • Ultra Hard Mod, which unlocks the Hard and Impossible difficulties, the latter of which cannot be beaten without New Game Plus.
    • 6 Treasures, which adds 6 new items.
    • Shuffle Dungeon, a randomized Bonus Dungeon that’s only accessible near the end of the game.
  • Borderlands
    • The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned (New questline)
    • Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot (Arena, item storage)
    • The Secret Armory of General Knoxx (New questline, raises level cap by 11)
    • Claptrap's Robot Revolution (New questline)
      • In addition to these, there was also a free patch which increased the level cap by 8.
  • Borderlands 2
    • Gaige the Mechromancer, originally a freebie for pre-ordering, creates a new playable character.
    • Season Pass, allows people to purchase the first four DLC campaigns for a cheaper price
      • Captain Scarlett and Her Pirate's Booty (New questline)
      • Mr. Torgue's Campaign of Carnage (New questline)
      • Sir Hammerlock's Big Game Hunt (New questline)
  • Brink
    • Agents of Change (raises the level cap by 4, adds a new ability for each class, and achievements that involve those abilities)
    • Doom/Psycho Combo Pack (additional character customization options)
    • Fallout/SpecOps Combo Pack (additional character customization options)
  • Bulletstorm
    • Gun Sonata (2 new Echoes maps, 3 new Anarchy maps, 2 new leash variants)
    • Blood Symphony (2 new Echoes maps, 3 new Anarchy maps)
  • Burnout Paradise was still updating DLC until two years after the game had come out, and many free updates for things that were planned that didn't make it, including:
    • Bikes (complete with a set of bike missions).
    • Extra cars, including some custom versions of already existing vehicles, and some toy versions (think smaller cars), and a few Lawyer-Friendly Cameo versions of famous cars.
    • Two new game play modes, Cops & Robbers (complete with cop skins for each car in the game), and a local multiplayer party mode.
    • An entirely new island route, with nine extra cars, many extra online missions, and more new missions for both bikes and cars.
  • Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
    • Variety Map Pack: 4 new multiplayer maps (free on PC)
    • Winter Crash: Christmas-themed version of the "Crash" multiplayer level (PC version only)
  • Call of Duty: World at War
    • Map Packs 1 through 3: each contain three new multiplayer maps and one new Nazi Zombies map. Can be purchased separately or in a bundle on consoles; free on PC version.
    • Makin Day bonus map (Free daytime version of Makin)
  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
    • Stimulus and Resurgence Packs: each contain two ported multiplayer maps from the first Modern Warfare in addition to three entirely new maps
  • Call of Duty: Black Ops
    • First Strike, Escalation, and Annihilation packs: each has 4 multiplayer maps and 1 Zombie map
    • Rezurrection pack: ports of the original World at War Zombies maps, plus a new "Moon" map; free for preorders, which already came with the original maps
  • Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 had several multiplayer packs released early through Activision's Call of Duty: Elite service for subscribers, and later in larger collections for non-subscribers, including:
    • Content Collection 1, which includes two Spec Ops missions and four new maps (Liberation, Piazza, Overwatch, Black Box).
    • Content Collection 2, which includes two Spec Ops missions, three new maps (Foundation, Sanctuary, Oasis) and two Face Off missions.
    • The Chaos Pack, which includes a Special Ops Chaos mode, new Special Ops missions and three new Face Off maps.
    • The Final Assault Pack, which includes five new maps.
  • Costume Quest has Grubbins on Ice, a Christmas-themed expansion.
  • Both Dance Central games have downloadable songs.
  • Dark Souls has the Prepare To Die Edition, an Updated Rerelease for the PC. The new content from the PC version available for the console version as Downloadable Content.
  • Dawn Of War II: Retribution is the first installment in the series to include DLC for later purchase. Already two has been released, an extra items goodie for the Orks and an actual visual makeover for the Space Marines to include a fully represented Dark Angels chapter, with their unique dress styles and iconography included as an alternative to the standard vanilla space marine styles. This may also mean that several other chapters, such as the Space Wolves and the Blood Angels will get similar DLCs for the game at a future date.
  • Dead Island
    • Bloodbath Arena (game mode where you Hold the Line against endless waves of zombies; comes with a leaderboard and supports up to four players)
    • Ryder White (short, single-player only character campaign)
  • Dead Rising has 12 separate keys that unlock additional clothing that Frank can wear.
    • Dead Rising 2 has 4 different Skill Packs (Ninja, Psycho, Sports Fan, and Soldier), which grant a bonus for wearing the whole set. They were all Pre-Order Bonuses until a month or 2 after release.
    • Dead Rising 2: Off the Record also has 4 Skill Packs (BBQ Chef, Cosplay Warrior, Firefighter, and Cyborg). There's also the GAMEBREAKER Pack, which allows you to (among other things) adjust time, make weapons unbreakable, turn on God Mode, and grant super speed.
  • Dead Space featured numerous examples of this:
    • The Astronaut Pack, which includes an orange/red suit and alternate weapon skins for the Plasma Cutter, Pulse Rifle and Ripper.
    • The Big Gun Pack, which includes the Steampunk Force Gun (which offers upgraded damage).
    • The Elite Pack (Xbox 360 exclusive), which includes a black-and-white suit and alternate weapon skins for the Line Gun, Plasma Cutter and Pulse Rifle.
    • The Heavy Damage Pack, which includes more-powerful versions of the Contact Beam, Plasma Cutter, Pulse Rifle and Ripper
    • The Hot Rod Pack, which includes alternate weapon skins for the Flamethrower and Pulse Rifle.
    • The Military Pack, which includes a white suit and more-powerful versions of all eight weapons.
    • The Obsidian Pack (Playstation 3 exclusive), which includes a black-and-blue skin and alternate weapon skins for the Line Gun, Plasma Cutter and Pulse Rifle.
    • The Pedestrian Pack, which includes gold-and-red weapon skins for the Contact Beam, Plasma Cutter and Ripper.
    • The Scorpion Pack, which includes a black-and-red suit and upgraded versions of the Force Gun, Line Gun and Plasma Cutter.
    • The Speed Kills Pack, which includes alternate weapon skins and upgraded speed for the Force Gun, Line Gun and Plasma Cutter.
    • The Tank Pack, which includes the most powerful suit in the game (featuring a 60% increase in damage resistance) and upgraded versions of the Flamethrower, Force Gun and Line Gun.
  • Dead Space 2:
    • The Collector's Edition comes with a code to download an exclusive Zealot Suit and matching Zealot Force Gun.
    • The Hazard Pack, which includes the Hazard Engineering Suit (and matching Line Gun), Shockpoint Advanced Suit (and matching Ripper) and Triage Security Suit (and matching Javelin Gun).
    • The Martial Law Pack, which includes the Bloody Vintage Suit and EarthGov Security Suit (and six matching weapons).
    • Outbreak, a multiplayer pack that includes two new maps (The Academy and Concourse).
    • Severed, a sidestory that follows up on the events of Dead Space Extraction, seen from the perspective of that game's main character, Gabe Weller.
    • The Supernova Pack, which includes the Agility Advanced Suit, Forged Engineering Suit and Heavy-Duty Vintage Suit (and matching versions of all weapons).
  • Deus Ex: Human Revolution
    • Tactical Enhancement Pack (Double-Barrel Shotgun, Silenced Sniper Rifle, 10,000 Credits) - originally a Pre-Order Bonus.
    • Explosive Mission Pack (Tong's Rescue Bonus Mission, Grenade Launcher, Remote-Detonated Explosive Device, Automatic Unlocking Device) - originally a Pre-Order Bonus.
    • The Missing Link (seperate scenario that takes place towards the end of the game)
  • Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice
    • Pretty much every playable character not already included from the previous two Disgaea games and even some that weren't playable back then.
    • Removed monster classes Nekomata and Dragon added back and playable from the beginning of the game.
    • Lord Zetta and Pram, main characters from Makai Kingdom. King Drake the Third also appears as a teacher as a bonus for buying the complete DLC pack and while he's in your base, he'll increase the stat growth of your characters upon leveling up.
    • Several characters from other Nippon Ichi games.
    • Four additional chapters starring Raspberyl as the main character. Upon clearing those the player is rewarded with two bonus weapons, new skills for a handful of characters and the final story boss becomes a playable caharacter.
    • Three "turn attack" modes that unlock Aramis and removed class Angels for creation.
    • A ludicrously hard battle against three Tyrant Baal. Fail to kill all of them in one turn and more Baals appear. If you drag the match for too long Chaos Soldiers will appear and fuse with Baal becoming pretty much invincible.
  • Disgaea 4: A Promise Unforgotten
    • Downloadable Characters: For the North American release, Fallen Angel Flonne can be obtained by preordering from either NISA store or Gamestop. Aside from her, you have Adell, Rozalin, HD Asagi (Free in the U.S.), Overlord Priere, Mao, Kyoko, Asuka, Pink, Main Hero B, Pleinair, Prism Red, Gig, Pram, Petta, Nisa, Marona, Ash, Hugo, Des X, Nemo, King Krichevskoy, and Pirohiko. Some of these characters also come with classes from the previous games like the Deathsabers, the Celestial Hosts, and the Kunoichi. Finally, two new classes—a Medic class (Designed by Noizi Ito) and a Necromancer class (Designed by Kohaku Kuroboshi)—have been added.
    • Downloadable Modes: There will be two downloadable scenarios similar to the Disgaea 3's Raspberyl Mode. The first will take place before the main game and feature Valvatorez during his days as a Tyrant—which will include an alternate version of Valvatorez (Tyrant Valvatorez, similar to Fallen Angel Flonne). The second will focus on Fuka, Desco and Prinny reincarnation. In addition, there will be added gameplay modes like Tournament Mode and Survival Mode.
    • Extra: Finally, with each character release, there will downloadable ship parts for your pirate ship and stage maps for both the map creator and the hub. Also, a bonus boss against the original Baal.
  • Dissidia 012 [duodecim]: Final Fantasy has extra costumes and BGM for sale in the Playstation store, some of which is region-specific. Buying a special prologue version of the game and importing its data is also the only way to get Aerith as a support-only character.
  • DLC Quest deconstructs this idea. The game has no actual DLC (you don't actually have to give away your own money), but all of the game constitutes of DLC purchaseable with in-game coins. Even the ability to move left is DLC.
  • Dragon Age: Origins
    • Warden's Keep (adds a quest, and a storage chest)
    • The Stone Prisoner (adds a new character, plus quests relating to said character)
    • Return to Ostagar (adds a quest)
    • Awakening (expansion; raises level cap and adds a new, shorter campaign set after Origins)
    • Feastday Gifts and Pranks (gifts for party members; the former raises your Relationship Values, and the later lowers it)
    • The Darkspawn Chronicles (What If? scenario where you play as a Darkspawn during the finale of Origins)
    • Leliana's Song (short quest that takes place before Origins and serves as Leliana’s backstory)
    • Golems of Amgarrak (short quest that takes place outside Origins and Awakening)
    • Witch Hunt (short quest detailing the whereabouts of Morrigan after Origins)
  • Dragon Age II
    • The Black Emporium (shop with better, more expensive items)
    • The Exiled Prince (adds additional character and his questline)
    • Legacy (quest outside the main game, playable from any point in the story)
    • Mark of the Assassin (quest outside the main game, playable from any point, with a Guest Star Party Member)
    • Two sets of item packs. Each set has a Warrior, Rogue, and Mage item pack, which can either be purchased separately or in a bundle.
  • Dragon Quest IX
    • Extra Quests, and Special Guests at the Inn (who give you cosplay gear).
    • Notable in that it is not only free, but automatically given to the player when connecting to the online shop if they are available.
  • Dungeon Defenders: a lot. Seriously, a lot. Check Steam. Half the game is DLC. Most of it is surprisingly cheap ($1/$2) and some of it (like the Capture the Flag mode) is even free.
  • Duke Nukem Forever
    • Hail to the Icons Parody Pack: Several new game modes and new maps for multiplayer.
    • The Doctor Who Cloned Me: New singleplayer campaign. Also comes with four new multiplayer maps.
  • Dynasty Warriors 6 Empires: Extra wardrobe options for the Edit Officer mode, as well as nine bonus music tracks from the original Dynasty Warriors Fighting Game. In an awesome move on Koei's part, all of it is absolutely free.
  • The Elder Scrolls III Morrowind, in addition to offering two full-fledged expansion packs in Tribunal and Bloodmoon, also featured several small pieces of DLC which are offered for free on the official site. This includes several rare armor pieces and weapons (Area Effect Arrows, Helm of Tohan, LeFemm Armor and Adamantium Armor), two mini-quests (Master Index and Siege at Firemoth) and an ambient sounds pack.
  • The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion
    • Several small DLC packs that allowed players to control/build a homestead related to their class, including the Fighter's Stronghold, Orrery, Thieves' Den, Vile Lair and Wizards' Tower. All of these packs included new areas to explore, upgrades for the various properties and unique items to find.
    • Horse Armor, which allows Elven or Steel plate armor to be added to any horse in-game. Originally cost $10, and is one of the more prominent examples of useless DLC.
    • Knights of the Nine, an official expansion that includes a quest to find nine relics in a new region.
    • Mehrunes' Razor, a mini-quest involving the search for a Daedric dagger artifact.
    • Shivering Isles, an official expansion that introduces a new region, questline and many new items, artifacts and characters.
    • Spell Tomes, which adds hundreds of spell-giving books throughout the game world.
  • The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim
    • A free high-texture pack
    • Fall of the Space Core, Vol. 1, created in partnership with Valve Software and released through the Steam Workshop, adds the titular core from Portal 2 to the game.
    • Dawnguard, the first major expansion pack, which drops the player in the middle of a war between the ancient Dawnguard and vampires.
    • Hearthfire, which adds a manse for the Dovahkiin and allows him/her to adopt children.
    • Dragonborn, a questline involving the player returning to Solstheim to confront a mysterious Dragon Priest, along with the ability to ride dragons.
  • Eternal Sonata has the Piano Key, which unlocks the Chopin piano pieces...which can also be unlocked by simply progressing through the game.
  • Europa Universalis, as well as it's counterparts in different eras have plenty of DLC, which often times revamp less popular mechanics, making a great game much more polished. Sometimes criticized for paying for bug fixes, though.
  • Fable II
    • Knothole Island
    • See the Future
      • There are "Free" and "Premium" versions of both DLC. Free means you obtain some of the items from the new areas, but you're unable to actually go there. That's where the Premium version comes in.
  • Fable III DLC is mostly comprised of various items, but there are also two Quest Packs: Understone, and Traitor's Keep.
  • Fallout 3
    • Operation: Anchorage
    • The Pitt
    • Broken Steel (Raises level cap by 10, expands main storyline)
    • Point Lookout
    • Mothership Zeta
  • Fallout: New Vegas
    • Dead Money
    • Honest Hearts
    • Old World Blues
    • Lonesome Road
      • Each of the above 4 DLC increases the level cap by 5, and adds a few perks to choose from when leveling up.
    • Courier's Stash (Compilation of all the Pre-Order Bonuses)
    • Gun Runners' Arsenal (Adds more weapons, weapon mods, ammunition types, challenges, and achievements/trophies)
  • Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales: Five promotional cards for the in-game card game; distributed through store demo kiosks. They can also be unlocked with button codes, but four of the five codes for the US version have never been released or discovered.
  • Final Fantasy IV: The After Years for Wii has an interesting DLC case, since you must get "The Crystal" chapter to finish the game.
  • Final Fantasy XIII-2
    • Weapons:
      • Serah: Genji Bow (originally a Pre-Order Bonus), Seraphic Wing, Azrael (Xbox 360 exclusive)
      • Noel: Muramasa, Catastrophe Blade
    • Outfits:
    • Coliseum Opponents (defeating them allows you to use them as an ally):
    • Episodes (additional side stories; adds a companion upon completion)
      • Sazh: Heads of Tails? (also adds additional Serendipity content)
      • Snow: Perpetual Battlefield
      • Lightning: Requiem of the Goddess
  • Fire Emblem: New Mystery of the Emblem ~Heroes of Light and Darkness~ the Japanese exclusive release for the Nintendo DS featured free extra downloadable missions.
  • Fire Emblem: Awakening marks the debut for DLC in its modern form for Nintendo systems.
  • The Forza Motorsport series mostly just has car packs, especially prevalent in 4.
    • Horizon has a monstrous 4000MSP season pass.
  • Grand Theft Auto IV
  • The Guitar Hero series from GH2 onward have downloadable songs.
  • The Gunstringer
    • The Wavy Tube Man Chronicles (free DLC that is reminiscent of Mad Dog McCree)
    • Real Big Shootin' (Shooting gallery)
    • El Diablo's 'Merican Adventure
  • Heavy Rain
    • Heavy Rain Chronicles 1: The Taxidermist
    • Two unreleased DLC featuring Norman Jayden and the Origami Killer.
  • All three of Humongous Entertainment's One Stop Fun Shop titles had extra art that could be downloaded off their now-gone site.
  • The iDOLM@STER is loaded with this.
  • Infinite Undiscovery has 2 DLC: A Voucher and B Voucher, both of which allow you to purchase item creation materials at any shop.
  • Just Cause 2’s DLC is mostly comprised of weapons and vehicles.
  • Just Dance 2 and 3 have a number of extra songs to download.
  • Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
    • Online Pass (House of Valor questline); comes free with a new copy.
    • Might, Finesse, and Sorcery Bonus Packs (additional weapons and armor). Can be purchased separately or in a bundle.
    • The Legend of Dead Kel (Additional questline)
    • Teeth of Naros (Additional questline)
  • L.A. Noire
    • A Slip of the Tongue case.
    • Reefer Madness case.
    • The Naked City case.
    • Nicholson Electroplating case.
    • The Consul's Car case; exclusive to PS3.
    • The Badge Pursuit Challenge, which adds 20 police badges to collect around L.A.; finding them all earns you the Button Man suit, which gives extra ammo to all weapons.
    • Chicago Piano Gun, which can be obtained in any police trunk.
    • The Sharpshooter suit, which increases the accuracy of pistols and rifles.
    • The Broderick suit, which increases damage dealt in fist fights.
    • The Rockstar Pass is a pack consisting of all of the above, minus the Consul's Car case and Piano Gun.
  • Left 4 Dead
    • Survival Pack: Adds Survival mode, one new map specifically designed for it, and two complete Versus mode campaigns (making every campaign that initially came with the game playable in that mode).
    • Crash Course: Additional campaign, plus new achievements, and an updated heads-up display for VS mode, allowing you to see the cooldown meters of other Infected players.
    • The Sacrifice: Additional campaign, plus new achievements.
  • Left 4 Dead 2
    • The Passing: Additional campaign, plus new achievements. Also adds Mutations and the M60 and Golf Club weapons.
    • The Sacrifice: Additional campaign, plus new achievements. Also allows you to play as the L4D1 survivors in The Sacrifice, and ports No Mercy from the first game.
    • Cold Stream: Fan-made campaign made official, also ports the other L4D1 campaigns to L4D2.
  • Little Big Planet DLC is mostly costumes, usually taken from other media. However, there are a few level kits as well, like Metal Gear Solid and Pirates of the Caribbean.
  • Lost Odyssey has the Triple Bonus Pack (two items and a cutscene viewer), and the Dungeon Pack (adds a Bonus Dungeon near the end of the game, along with achievements).
  • Marvel Ultimate Alliance: Hero Pack (which added Cyclops, Nightcrawler, The Hulk, and Hawkeye) and a Villain Pack (which added Magneto, Sabretooth, Venom, and Doctor Doom) for the Xbox 360 and PS3 editions. A rather infamous case because these were quickly pulled off the market by Activision, citing poor sales. Currently, the only way to get these is by hunting down the rare Gold Edition which already came with the DLC.
  • Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2: Again, bonus character downloads on the 360 and PS3 which added Black Panther, Psylocke, Cable, Magneto, and Carnage. It also made Juggernaut downloadable as well, who was only a preorder bonus. Activision still hadn't learned, and pulled them off the market shortly after the game was released. This meant that anyone who got the game for the holiday in 2009 would be screwed over. The complaints were so bad that Activision finally decided to make them available again... until the end of 2010. And unlike the first game, which had a version with all of the DLC available, there still isn't one for the second game.
  • Marvel Vs Capcom 3 has Jill and Shuma-Gorath as DLC characters, and DLC costumes for everyone.
  • Mass Effect:
  • Mass Effect 2 was a dedicated producer of it through the "Cerberus Network" client. Up until October 2010, they released one DLC every month. The packs included:
    • Several pieces of promotional or Pre-Order Bonus content, including the Arc Projector, Blood Dragon Armor (from Dragon Age: Origins), the Normandy Crash Site mission and three visors (Recon Hood, Sentry Interface and Umbra Visor).
    • Several armor and weapon packs, including the Aegis Pack, Cerberus Assault Gear, Collectors' Armor Pack (exclusive to the Collector's Edition), Equalizer Pack, Firepower Pack, Terminus Pack, and the PS3-exclusive Recon Operations Pack amd N7 Complete Arsenal, which collected all of the armor sets released at the time.
    • Alternate Appearance Packs, which offer unique outfits for squadmates. Two were released, comprising half of the available squadmates.
    • Arrival, the final story DLC for the game, which follows Shepard as s/he investigates the disappearance of a prominent Alliance researcher in a Batarian star system, and acts as a prologue to the following game.
    • Firewalker Pack, a free set of missions that introduces the Mako's successor, the Hammerhead, and follows the search for a Prothean artifact.
    • Kasumi: Stolen Memory, which introduced the master thief of the same name. Included two missions and a new submachine gun.
    • Lair of the Shadow Broker, a massive DLC pack that expands on a subplot from the first game. Includes a full series of missions, new gameplay enhancements and the ability to go deeper into the history of main and supporting characters from the franchise.
    • Mass Effect: Genesis, a digital comic book that allows people who haven't played the first game to learn about the story and make key choices from the previous game. Included for free in the PS3 version, along with the Cerberus Network, Overlord, Kasumi, and the Shadow Broker.
    • Overlord, a DLC pack that revolves around Shepard discovering a rogue VI at a Cerberus facility.
    • Zaeed: The Price of Revenge, which was included for free with all new copies of the game, and introduced the mercenary of the same name. Included two missions and the M-451 Firestorm heavy weapon.
  • Mass Effect 3
    • The N7 Collector's Edition includes codes for an N7 Weapon Pack (featuring a submachine gun, sniper rifle, pistol and shotgun), a robotic dog who will appear on the Normandy, a casual hoodie to wear on the ship and an alternate appearance pack for 4 of the squad members.
    • Several pieces of promotional and Pre-Order Bonus content, including the Chakram Launcher/Knight-Reckoner Armor (unlocked by playing through the Kingdoms Of Amalur demo), the M-55 Argus assault rifle, the AT-12 Raider shotgun, the "N7 Warfare Gear" pack (N7 Defender Armor/Valkyrie Rifle) if preordered from Gamestop and a Battlefield 3 multiplayer kit.
    • Several pieces of single-player content:
      • Alternate Appearance Pack, which includes a new armor set for Shepard and new outfits for some squad members.
      • Extended Cut, a free DLC released in response to a much-criticized lack of closure in the endings. Whether it fixes everything is up for debate, but now you actually get some nods to your various decisions.
      • Firefight Pack, a collection of eight weapons from the multiplayer mode that can be used in the single-player campaign.
      • From Ashes, which includes a new squadmate (a living Prothean named Javik), a new area to explore (Eden Prime), a prototype Particle Rifle and alternate costumes for every squadmate except the new one. It's free to anyone with the N7 Collector's Edition (and $10 for everyone else).
      • Groundside Resistance Pack, which (like the Firefight Pack) adds seven weapons from the multiplayer mode to the single-player campaign.
      • Leviathan, a storyline involving the history of the Reapers, featuring new areas, weapons (including the formerly Pre-Order Bonus AT-12 Raider shotgun) and weapon mods.
      • Omega, a storyline involving Shepard teaming up with Aria T'Loak and a Turian mercenary (who happens to be the first Turian female seen in the series) to retake Omega from Cerberus.
      • Citadel, the final storyline, involving your entire squad (and Wrex) tracking down a new threat on the Citadel. Also includes an apartment on one of the wards, the nearby entertainment center, and scenes with all your surviving squadmates.
    • Several pieces of multiplayer content, all of which was released for free:
      • Resurgence Pack, which includes two new maps (Firebases Condor and Hydra), and introduces the Geth and Batarians as playable races, in addition to one new character class for both the Krogan and Asari.
      • Rebellion Pack, which includes two new maps (Firebases Jade and Goddess) and includes six new character classes.
      • Earth, which includes three new maps (Firebases Rio, Vancouver and London), six new classes representing the Alliance's most elite N7 operatives, and new weapons.
      • Retaliation, which introduces several new enemies (including the Collectors and their husk variants from the prior game), over a dozen new player classes (including the Vorcha and Volus), new weapons and alternate "Hazard" versions of existing maps.
      • Reckoning, which introduces 6 new player classes (including a Collector (!))
  • Mega Man Powered Up
  • Mega Man X: The iOS port, specifically. In one of the more egregious examples on this page, you can, instead of finding the Heart Tanks and armor parts yourself, buy them.
  • Mega Man Star Force
    • 1: Andromeda Giga Card, L.M. Shin Brother data
    • 2: King Grandeur and Le Mu Mega and Giga Cards, 1st Mega Man and L.M. Shin Brother data
    • 3: Acid Arrest and Crimson Meteor Mega and Giga Cards
  • Mortal Kombat 9
  • Neverwinter Nights and Neverwinter Nights 2 have various premium campaign modules available as DLC. NWN bundles them with the Diamond release.
  • New Super Mario Bros 2: Has downloadable packs of coin rush levels, like the Nerve Wrack Pack, Mystery Adventure Pack and near aptly named Impossible Pack. There's also the free Gold Classics Pack.
  • New Super Mario Bros U: Getting new DLC starring Luigi with EIGHTY NEW LEVELS! And probably also Boost Rush content, but who cares about that?
  • NHL Hockey: Some titles in the series allow for players to download updated rosters and added improvements to gameplay.
  • PAYDAY: The Heist
    • No Mercy - A free level for everyone based on the No Mercy campaign from Left 4 Dead. Players who own Left 4 Dead or Left 4 Dead 2 (PC only) get masks that are based off the franchise's special infected.
    • Wolfpack DLC - Paid content containing two new heists, a new class tree (Technical class), and three new weapons (automatic pistol, rifle, and a grenade launcher). Players who don't own the DLC can still play the new maps if the host owns the DLC.
  • Pokémon: Especially in Generation IV.
    • Pokémon's been doing this all the way back since 1999, which could potentially make it the Trope Codifier. It's free, technically, but has been limited to certain areas and made the game impossible to complete without cheating if you're going for 100% Completion, although these days with wi-fi access being more common outside of japan most event releases are now more easily obtainable although they still do events that require going some place to get something.
  • Portal 2 has a bunch of cosmetic additions to the co-op mode robots available through the Robot Enrichment Center. A DLC is also be available with the Razer Hydra, adding chambers where the portal gun gets abilities like the PhysGun in Garry's Mod.
    • Peer Review includes a Time Trial mode for single player and co-op mode for best time and least amount of portals used. Co-op also has 9 new test chambers with expanded storyline for it.
  • Professor Layton has weekly (in Miracle Mask, daily) downloadable puzzles, for free.
  • Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords has Revenge of the Plague Lord, which adds a separate set of quests to thegame.
  • Ratchet And Clank Full Frontal Assault
    • Predators Pack
    • Miniboss Pack
    • Villain Pack
    • NPC Pack
    • Classic Pack
    • Robot Pack
  • Red Dead Redemption
    • Outlaws to the End Co-op Mission Pack
    • Legends and Killers pack
    • Liars and Cheats pack
    • Hunting and Trading Pack
    • Undead Nightmare pack
      • Undead Nightmare Collection (bundles Liars and Cheats, Legends and Killers, and Undead Nightmare DLC)
    • War Horse
    • Golden Guns Weapon Pack
    • Deadly Assassin Outfit
    • Myths and Mavericks Bonus Pack
  • Resident Evil 5
    • Lost in Nightmares
    • Desperate Escape
  • Raliworks
  • Rock Band
    • Constant new song updates. Currently, there are over 3000 songs.
  • Sakura Taisen 3
    • "Drama files" containing small stories. Some cost money (well, DreamPoints) to download.
  • Saints Row The Third
    • Invincible Pack (cheats)
    • Funtime! Pack (additional weapon, vehicle, and outfit)
    • Money Shot Pack
    • Shark Attack Pack (additional weapon and hat)
    • Z Style Pack (additional weapon and hat)
    • Explosive Combat Pack (additional weapon and outfit)
    • Warrior Pack (4 additional outfits)
    • Bloodsucker Pack
    • Season Pass (unlocks the following 4 DLC as they're released)
      • Genkibowl VII
      • Gangstas In Space
      • The Trouble With Clones
      • Nyte Blayde Pack (Outfits and vehicles)
    • Viewer Packs: Allows you to play online co-op with someone that has one of the DLC in the Season Pass (minus Nyte Blayde), if you don't have it.
    • Special Ops Vehicle Pack (Saints-themed vehicles)
    • Steelport Gangs Pack (6 outfits)
  • Samba De Amigo
    • New songs. In the Dreamcast version, it was free; in the Wii version, it costs money.
  • The Sims (the first game) had free DLC: NPCs, objects, music from Superstar, wallpapers, and tools to use with the game. The official site for the first game has, unfortunately, closed, sometime during the 10 years since the game was released.
  • The Sims 3, as well as having the usual Expansion Packs associated with the Sims franchise, has a DLC Store which includes:
    • New worlds (both free and pay)
    • New clothing and hair
    • Home decor and home improvement
    • The occasional branded/sponsored content
    • "Premium Content" (items with new interations not available in the base game or in expansion packs)
      • Prices vary depending on what's being bought: a new top for a teen sim can cost as little as 25 points/$0.25, while currently (Nov 2011) the most expensive is the Best of 2010 Collection containing 16 of the most popular DLC sets released in 2010 for 6k points/$60.
  • Skullgirls has (not currently out yet) downloadable fighters, including undead Idol Singer Squigly and (black, male) Jazz saxophonist Big Band, and stages to go with them.
  • WWE video game series
    • As well as a budding creations community (who have made everyone...everyone, Jax Tellar, Buffy and Faith, past wrestlers, wrestlers in the game from previous years, current versions of wrestlers already in the game...) THQ has come up with several download packs and updates expanding the roster and moves.
  • Sonic Adventure
    • Special time trial stages for online records
    • Modified promotional stages for Reebok/AT&T
    • Christmas, Halloween, Y2K events
    • Special Chao
  • Sonic Adventure 2
    • New kart racing stages and karts.
    • Menu themes
  • Sonic Unleashed has Adventure Packs for various locations, including Chun-Nan, Spagonia, Holoska, Mazuri, Apotos & Shamar, and Empire City & Adabat.
  • Soulcalibur IV
    • Yoda or Darth Vader, depending on which console you bought the game on (360 for the former, PS3 for the latter). There's also a number of holiday-themed clothing pieces for Character Creation mode and music from the original Soulcalibur.
      • To clarify: Yoda was exclusive to 360, Darth Vader to PS3. The one that isn't available in the "vanilla" version is the one that can be bought.
  • Soulcalibur V
    • Dampierre, previously a pre-order bonus from Best Buy, is now available for $5/400 Microsoft Points.
    • Light and Dark Knight Armor, only available by getting the Limited Edition.
    • 5 songs from each of the previous Soul games, and 1 from Broken Destiny.
    • Cepheus Compatibility Packs, which add new customization options for Character Creation.
  • Star Wars: The Force Unleashed has a Mission in Jedi Temple, Tatooine, and Hoth. All 3 are included in the Ultimate Sith Edition.
  • Street Fighter X Tekken is notorious for the absolute shitstorm of controversy caused by the discovery that pretty much all the content being sold as DLC was already on the disc.
    • Gems (basically, equipment that powers up players in a crisis)
    • Customization colours
    • Alternate costumes
    • Fourteen characters. Two of them, Mega Man and Pac-Man, are free; the other twelve were originally planned to be released in the Fall, but were pushed upward to the Summer because of complaints.
  • Street Fighter IV
    • 5 costume packs and a special form of Ranked Match called Championship Mode.
  • ''Super Street Fighter IV;;
    • 2 sets of 7 new costume packs
    • Tournament Mode
    • Super Street Fighter IV: Arcade Edition, which adds 4 new characters (Yun, Yang, Evil Ryu, and Oni) and rebalances the game.
    • Arcade Challeengers Pack, which contains 2 sets of Alternate Costumes for each of the 4 newcomers from Arcade Edition.
  • Supreme Commander 2
    • Infinite War Battle Pack One: New units, some returning from the first game.
  • Tales of Vesperia has a lot of DLC, all of which fall under the category of Bribing Your Way to Victory:
    • Three packs of 300,000 Gald.
    • Battle Support Item Pack.
    • Camping Kit.
    • Customize Packs for the various characters.
    • Two Gel Sets, one of which is free.
    • Two Level Up + 10 packs.
    • Four Level Up + 5 packs.
    • Pack o’ Useful Stuff.
    • Three Recipe Sets.
    • Three Synthesis Kits.
    • Trial Skill Packs for the various characters.
    • Trial Synthesis Kit.
  • Tekken Tag Tournament 2
    • Released as time delay updates free of charge, these unlocked new characters as well as items and a crapton of custom logos that could be used in character customization.
  • Wipeout
    • Pure: Goteki 45, Tigron, Van Uber and Icaras vehicles; Iridia, Anulpha Pass, Odessa Keys, Porta Kora, Exostra Run, Uber Mall, Staten Park, Sebenco Peak, Vohl Square, Koltiwa and Khara Descent tracks *; and even some remixes of old background music. (No longer available via official sources.)
    • Pulse: Mirage, Auricom, Harimau and Icaras crafts and Orcus, Vostok Reef, Gemini Dam, and Edgewinter tracks (Europe only)
    • HD: Fury (Adds 3 new modes and 8 new tracks)
  • X-Universe: DLC is generally incorporated into major patches.
    • Bonus Pack of signed scripts (free)
    • X3: Terran Conflict:
      • A Place of Sunshine (bonus sector distributed over Steam)
      • X3: Albion Prelude expansion ($9.99 to owners of TC, free to owners of the X-Superbox series collection)
  • You Don't Know Jack (2011)
    • 4 separate Jack Packs, each of which adds 10 new episodes.
  • The original Zoo Tycoon had some free downloadable animals, decorations, and Mexican and Atlantean theme packs.
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