Only a handful of games this year had tons of downloadable content that kept players going months after their original release. Entertainment Fuse shares their picks of games that had the best post-release DLC support.
Matt Rowles - Halo 4
I would give this award to Halo 4 for what it has provided so far in only a short period of time since release. The first map pack has already been released with new achievements and with the season pass we know there is more on the way which means the game will be seemingly supported for a long time after its release. We also have Spartan Ops which isn't the best thing to happen to Halo but the fact that it's all new content for free is pretty rare in blockbuster games. Short standalone missions provide a nice change from competitive multiplayer and campaign which provide a more slow paced alternative to the norm. With 5 episodes already out and more planned for early next year it's great to see a developer giving back to the fans for free when they could have easily charged for the DLC.
Kyle Enz - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
While 2012 was a record year for DLC support for games, no game's post launch DLC stuck with me more then The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The three expansions so far, Dawnguard, Hearthfire, and Dragonborn have all provided substantial expansions to the game, but also the game's various update patches have been constant in effectively fixing bugs and adding tweaks to the overall experience. When was the last time you saw a game add Kinect support post launch? How about Kinect suppport that actually works? How about some horseback combat? Those two things were added in free updates. Some may scoff at the $20 price point for two of those three downloadable contents (the Heartfire add-on is only $5), but for the amount of content being offered, I felt the price was worth it. I can't think of a more shining example of a game with excellent post launch DLC support than Skyrim in 2012.
Jeffrey Dy - Mass Effect 3
If there was a game that kept me playing with the amount of DLC released, it was Mass Effect 3. From the first day to its release to even now, EA and BioWare have been keeping players busy. Even though the From Ashes DLC could of been in the final game, months and months of releases for both multiplayer and single player folks increased its replay value tenfold. The free multiplayer character packs have been great additions to the multiplayer with the various races and classes that spice up the gameplay. That alone kept me playing for months leveling up new classes I got from spectre packs. The paid single player missions, Leviathan and Omega, are also solid additions that gave you enough reasons to go back to the campaign even after beating it. Leviathan was more story-driven than Omega and the amount of details you learn about the Reapers make the ending a little understandable. Speaking of the ending, BioWare did release the Extended Cut ending this summer after numerous complaints by fans. It might not answer every question fans wanted to know, but it was satisfying enough for me. Mass Effect 3 is not done with DLC yet as they plan to have their last single-player DLC be their best yet sometime next year.
Christopher Puenner - The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
The Best DLC Support award fits no one better than The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. With three separate high quality releases, there has been little downtime for Skyrim fans this year. The most notable thing about this though is the variety of content in these DLCs. Dawnguard added a bunch of fun new content, Hearthfire allowed roleplaying characters to get a bit more immersion, and Dragonborn fulfills all your dragon riding fantasies. Adding to an already existing game is difficult and tricky, so one could imagine that pushing out content for an already incredibly successful game would be even more risky. Bethesda pulled it off though and with flying colors.
Having only played a very small amount of each DLC, it is important to note that even if you do not enjoy RPGs or Skyrim just doesn't seem to be your game the excellence of their added content is evident and obviously apparent. Let's hope that all this post-release support won't get in the way of the development of the Elder Scrolls Online.
