I'd like to introduce our latest Guest Blogger, Andrew Baxter! He's a game enthusiast with a great sense of history. He and I talked after a past post, and he offered to look at the history of DLC. Lots of insights here, so take your time.
DLC has a very promising future in gaming and offers amazing potential to extend the lifespan of a product. With the inevitable move towards digital distribution, this is one area developers simply cannot afford to overlook. Keeping a customer base loyal and interested in your product can only lead to increased future sales through good word of mouth and should be encouraged heavily. A quick Google search on 'Team Fortress 2' shows the appreciation gamers can and will show for developers that go the extra mile.
It hasn't always looked as bright as this however. Over recent years we've seen many questionable forms of extra content released.