Magmavision2000 Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 What are some examples of early DLC (I'm not talking about expansion packs, I'm talking about real downloadable content)? I know that Sonic adventure had a New Year's DLC, and that was in 1999. Star Wars Battlefront 2 had Xbox exclusive DLC in 2006, but by then, DLC was starting to be common place. Those are the earliest I can think of (on consoloe at least, I'm sure there was PC DLC in the late 80's and stuff). Do you know of any? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Pendleton Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 (edited) Total Annihilation had some. There were also free map packs/extra maps included in patches for various games like Battlefield 1942 (although that was 2002). I think there might have been some for Unreal Tournament, as well, but that was 21 years ago and I forgot, especially since I was only 9 at the time. Yes, I played UT when I was 9. I can basically guarantee that there are others that I'm forgetting or just don't even know about. Edited August 11, 2020 by Steven Pendleton grammar, formatting Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newsdee Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 By definition, DLC would require an internet or at least modem connection. From that point of view, Atari's GameLine (1983?), the Sega Channel (late 1994) and the Super Famicom BS-X (1995) would count. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Pendleton Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 I'm not very knowledgeable about the Satallaview, which is why I didn't mention it despite it coming to mind, but I'm pretty sure that Sega Channel didn't have actual DLC. I suppose the various BS games on the Satellaview might count, but I'm not entirely sure since I'm out of my element with Nintendo stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godslabrat Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 If we define DLC as an addition to an existing game, not a standalone game in and of itself, I'm not sure if the Sega Channel, Gameline, or BSX qualify. Can anyone clarify? What about the Saturn? Didn't that have some modem content? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbd30 Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 There was the "Alien Doom" mod in the mid 90s but that was user created. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jhd Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 Starting in 2001, the PlayStation 2 had a small handful of games that featured DLC (if the console had the optional hard disk installed). Most of these releases were Japan-only, however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CatPix Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 4 hours ago, godslabrat said: If we define DLC as an addition to an existing game, not a standalone game in and of itself, I'm not sure if the Sega Channel, Gameline, or BSX qualify. Can anyone clarify? What about the Saturn? Didn't that have some modem content? DLC is "downloadable Content" not "downloadable data". I always head it being defined as an addition to an existing game. However it asks the question wether game patches count (probably not). Thus early game downlad services doesn't count since they made you download the whole game without addition to the original game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 (edited) Doom and all the user-created levels. They are downloadable. They are content. I'm sure there are earlier examples, but this is one everyone knows. 5 hours ago, mbd30 said: There was the "Alien Doom" mod in the mid 90s but that was user created. Doesn't really matter where the material was sourced. Edited August 11, 2020 by Keatah Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zzip Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 Populous (1989?)- Promised Lands needed the original games. Flight Simulator II (1984?) had scenery disks you could buy separately The Sims (2000) had a bunch expansion packs The way "Alternate Reality" was originally described, it sounded like there was going to be three add-on content packs But AR The Dungeon was eventually released as a standalone game, and the other two never came out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 If Flight Simulator scenery disks were considered DLC, then what about Br0derbund's PrintShop? There must be at least 50-100 disks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fultonbot Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 Artworxx Strip Poker data disks come to mind... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 Eamon. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magmavision2000 Posted August 11, 2020 Author Share Posted August 11, 2020 8 hours ago, godslabrat said: If we define DLC as an addition to an existing game, not a standalone game in and of itself, I'm not sure if the Sega Channel, Gameline, or BSX qualify. Can anyone clarify? What about the Saturn? Didn't that have some modem content? 13 hours ago, Steven Pendleton said: I'm not very knowledgeable about the Satallaview, which is why I didn't mention it despite it coming to mind, but I'm pretty sure that Sega Channel didn't have actual DLC. I suppose the various BS games on the Satellaview might count, but I'm not entirely sure since I'm out of my element with Nintendo stuff. Satelleview was basically cable TV but playable, so there was no downloading (you could save a game on the card that came with it, but I think it only held one game) whatsoever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Newsdee Posted August 11, 2020 Share Posted August 11, 2020 (edited) To be fair, before DLC there were expansion packs and shareware titles as examples of (often paid) extra content. It was much more inconvenient than modern DLC, which is usually tied to a marketplace (Steam, PSN, Xbox live, etc.) User-created levels predated Doom, there was (is) user content for ZZT / Zeux for example. They were distributed via BBS or floppies and needed user intervention to install (as opposed to the 1-click downloads of most DLC). MMORPGs are also mostly DLC content (that you pay monthly). Ultima Online from 1997 popularized the genre, but there were earlier examples. Edited August 11, 2020 by Newsdee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Pendleton Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 2 hours ago, Magmavision2000 said: Satelleview was basically cable TV but playable, so there was no downloading (you could save a game on the card that came with it, but I think it only held one game) whatsoever. So that's how it works. It definitely does not count in that case! Speaking of what counts and what doesn't, what exactly do you want to count as DLC? User-created maps, as pointed out above, are content that is downloaded. I'm pretty sure you meant stuff that was created by the original game's developer (and nobody else) and then offered separately, free or not, as a downloadable thingy, and definitely not on a physical disc that you could buy a copy of like an expansion pack or whatever. Just a guess, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magmavision2000 Posted August 12, 2020 Author Share Posted August 12, 2020 2 minutes ago, Steven Pendleton said: Speaking of what counts and what doesn't, what exactly do you want to count as DLC? User-created maps, as pointed out above, are content that is downloaded. I'm pretty sure you meant stuff that was created by the original game's developer (and nobody else) and then offered separately, free or not, as a downloadable thingy, and definitely not on a physical disc that you could buy a copy of like an expansion pack or whatever. Just a guess, though. Yep, stuff officially made and then sold (or gave out if it was free) for download. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Pendleton Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 (edited) 23 minutes ago, Magmavision2000 said: Yep, stuff officially made and then sold (or gave out if it was free) for download. I thought so. I personally only know about Total Annihilation as a true early example of DLC, unfortunately. It's also a super kick-ass game, as well! After some research, here's the website with the downloads. Extra units, extra maps, and also the map editor (but I don't think that counts): https://web.archive.org/web/20010330073657/http://www.cavedog.com/totala/dwnlds_frame.html Edited August 12, 2020 by Steven Pendleton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanooki Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 Well I mean maybe a little of a stretch, but the Famicom Disk System had downloadable content at kiosks or through their local modem network. You could pick up little expansion bits or corporate swap out stuff like that hack of SMB2j to play. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Black_Tiger Posted August 12, 2020 Share Posted August 12, 2020 Sonic & Knuckles added content to Sonic 3. There are games that read barcodes and misc to add content. CD Battle for PC Engine creates a party of characters for you based on the CD you give it to read. I didn't get to play PSO for Dreamcast online, but PSO Ep I & II had new areas with new enemies, items and story available through DLC only until an updated version of the game was physically released. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teh_lurv Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 The Elder Scrolls: Morrowind had official mods by the dev team available for free only through Bethesda's website. IIRC, one added butterflies and other scenery improvements. Another added a small island to the game with a high difficulty dungeon. To my knowledge these never got included in any of the expansions or the GotY edition. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Video Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 I was going to say sonic an knuckles, though I think it ran as an independent game, it was an add-on for sonic 2 and 3. Not sure if gameline or Sega channel count, it's definitely a download service, but as far as I'm aware, neither had unique titles. I seem to recall several dnd games for the c64 had expansions you could buy, but I don't remember. Sure, not technically a download, as it came on discs, but still expansions using the original games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic Pac Posted August 16, 2020 Share Posted August 16, 2020 To talk about PS2 DLC you're talking about PS2 / PSP Connectivity something that to say it rarely talked about is an understatement. There is almost nothing on this save for here on my own blog and 1 post on Reddit which gives a list of 13 games. So far after checking 7 of them I only found 4 which has this rare DLC ATV Offroad Fury 4 PS2 / ATV Offroad Fury Pro PSP Crash Tag Team Racing PS2 and PSP Jax X PS2 / Daxter PSP Outrun 2006: Coast to Coast PS2 and PSP Not only does it unlock hidden vehicles, in some cases new tracks, characters and hidden features in both titles. I have since learned that this extends to a very limited number of PS3 games, so far I only heard of possible connection to Gran Turismo 5 PS3 but due to my optical drive issue I am unable to check this for now. I want to make this very clear I am talking about US releases, none are imports. If you know of any additional titles and what it unlocks please message me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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