|  |
|
 | 
It's great that Xbox fans now have a new Splinter Cell mission to play. Really. |
I had meant to write about this topic earlier, so apologies for the delay. A few weeks ago, Ubi Soft released its first bonus mission for Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell, the excellent and visually impressive Xbox stealth game. But I was baffled at just how excited Splinter Cell fans seemed to be about the extra mission. Sure, Splinter Cell is a terrific game, but it's just an extra mission, even if it, along with updates to games like MechAssault and Capcom vs. SNK 2 EO, does represent what will likely become regular content updates to games over Xbox Live. If you think about it, this could mean that developers may start issuing patches for their console games--small update files to fix bugs and technical problems that should never have been in the final game to begin with. While I can't say I like the idea of console games getting patched, I do think that content additions are a great way to prolong the life of any game on any platform, so I'm definitely glad for my fellow Xbox owners. But you know what, now that I think about it, I'd probably be more excited about the Splinter Cell bonus mission if I wasn't already too busy playing these 10 new, free UT 2003 maps and these seven new, free NOLF 2 maps.
See, regular content updates are commonplace for PC games, and have been for some time, especially from developers that care enough about their products to support them after launch. Yes, PC games are sometimes released with bugs and technical issues, and the developers sometimes end up chasing them down with patch files after the game's retail release--they've been doing it for years, and it's no less annoying now than it was four years ago. But it's also quite common for PC game developers to keep improving their games, especially thanks to the miracles of the Internet and the World Wide Web, respectively, which make distributing file updates a breeze. In fact, that's how online role-playing games like EverQuest and Asheron's Call 2 continue to stay fresh and new to their players; the developers constantly add new areas, quests, and items to the game.
| 
Want some free Warcraft III maps? |
But then, online RPGs pretty much have to remain dynamic to keep their players interested. Still, developers release regular (and free!) updates for lots of other kinds of PC games. For instance, popular strategy games like Warcraft III and Age of Mythology will receive content and balance updates from time to time, especially if the games' vocal player communities complain about imbalances in the games themselves. When you play a PC real-time strategy game competitively online, as many strategy fans do, you may find little imbalances; some units are slightly stronger than others or cost just a bit too much or too little to produce, which gives some strategies an unfair advantage over others. It's very common for good real-time strategy developers to address these issues by releasing updates to help balance out their games, and it's also common for developers to slip in some extra goodies for their players, like new maps and new units.
| 
I don't know exactly how many free mods there are for this game, but it's a big number. |
Also, unless you've been living in a cave for the past few years, you've probably heard that dedicated PC game fans have been making independent add-ons, or "mods," for their favorite games for years. One of the most popular online games around originally started as a mod, in fact. Last year, a veteran role-playing game developer released a highly anticipated RPG that was made for independent mod authors. Last time I checked, there were more than 500 independently made mods for Neverwinter Nights, but that was, what...over seven months ago, so who knows how many there are now. In the meantime, enterprising fans are constantly making free downloadable mods for their favorite games. Craig recently shared some of his favorite Warcraft III mods in a previous edition of GameSpotting, and he's also spoken very highly of the modern-day Desert Combat mod for Battlefield 1942, which I really need to try out one of these days.
| 
10 free maps and a new multiplayer mode? Yeah, I'll take that. |
Then there's my favorite kind of free add-on--the kind that adds lots of brand-new content to play through, like the recently released UT 2003 and NOLF 2 map packs. If you're still playing these games, or even if you've finished with them and put them on your shelf, these freebies give you a great excuse to fire them up again and enjoy them even further, especially if these additions include new multiplayer maps and features that you can play online against other human players.
| 
Too bad this was canceled. At least I'll be able to play it as a free download. |
You know, now that I think about it, the previously planned expansion pack for GameSpot PC's multiplayer action game of the year 2001 was recently canceled. It's a shame, because Return to Castle Wolfenstein's class-based multiplayer (which lets you play as different character classes with different abilities, like reviving downed allies and replenishing your troops' ammo) was, and continues to be, a lot of fun. Fortunately for me and my fellow Wolfenstein fans, the game's publisher was classy enough to decide to continue working on what it currently has and then release it as a free download in the near future. What would have happened if Enemy Territory had been a console-only game, I wonder. I'd sit here and chat about it with you, but I just downloaded the new Battlefield 1942 Aberdeen bonus map. So, if you'll excuse me.
| |
| 
