Always-On DRM, Day-One DLC,Online Passes – What We Don’t Want to See in 2013

Now that the new year is finally upon us, we can look back at what video games brought us in terms of trends in 2012 while looking ahead toward 2013. Overall, 2012 was a good year for games like Far Cry 3, Dishonored,The Walking Dead, on the other hand, certain games, trends became so ubiquitous that we hope to be rid of them for a good while. Take a look below for a list of trends from 2012 we hope don’t resurface in 2013.

Day-One Patches

Part of the current video game landscape is the ubiquitous day-one patch required for nearly every game that comes to market.

 

Stable Servers

Hotly-anticipated game and “server issues” go hand in hand, to a degree – although the need for constant access to the servers is another level of complexity.

 

Bad Ports

I’ve been an avid PC and console gamer throughout the years, but have always been consistently disappointed with one thing in particular—bad console ports.

 

Day-One-DLC

When done properly downloadable content can add a great deal of value to games, but locked on-disc content and day-one DLC can hurt video game brands.

 

Online Passes

It seems to me that the companies that made Online Pass a standard “feature” aren’t faring too well, maybe they’re going to realize that used games aren’t the biggest problem

 

Always-On DRM

For years now, gamers have complained loudly about agressive DRM strategies. The most aggressive of these methods was always-on DRM, which required a constant internet connection. Lose your connection momentarily and you can kiss hours of gameplay goodbye.