So, we are back again with more DLC that's out for our favourite Xbox360 games and titles. First up is Valve's addon (free) for Left4Dead.
Aptly titled: Left4Dead: Survival Pack this comes with a bunch of fixes and updated gameplay. Both Dead Air and Blood Harvest are now playable in versus mode and Valve has tweaked the various infected a little more to improve gameplay balance on the previous two campaigns as well. They have included a new game mode called: Survival.
Essentially a timed survival mode against wave after wave of increasingly harder infected, Survival Mode builds on the frenetic cooperation of the campaign mode's Crescendo Events and offers 15 maps culled from the main game, some of the maps have been altered to improve gameplay in Survival and eliminate certain 'cheat/exploit' spots that were previously used by gamers in the events. The building at the top of the hospital roof in No Mercy is no longer present in the Survival version of the map.
Valve has also included a new map, Last Stand, set around a broken down old lighthouse, this map is rife with locations to hole up in for a short while and numerous gas cans, gas bottles and tonnes of pipe bombs and molotovs to play with. It's possible to set up elaborate traps ahead of schedule and then attempt to lure the bigger infected in. We found that one of the best methods to stay alive is to keep moving and try to stick together, after the second or third Tank though, this becomes totally insane.
All in all, L4D Survival Pack is a worthy addon and at the price of FREE, you can't really grumble. It adds even more play time to Valve's co-op zombie shooter and with Last Stand there is a lot of mileage on the console versions it seems for new maps and modes.
Then we have Lionhead's Fable 2 content: Knothole Island.
Clocking in at a few short hours of gameplay, Knothole Island adds new weapons, equipment, clothing, dyes, armour choices and a few surprises into Fable 2's already expansive gameplay world. It can be played by going to the Island via a dock at one of the cities and rather than spoil the story for those who haven't yet got it, involves a few short quests that interleave and a fairly sizeable new area to explore. It adds a lot of playability to Fable 2 and whilst it's not the best content they could have mustered to add to the story, it gives you a few new things to play with that are pretty cool.
The new story is aptly voice acted and whilst it doesn't push any boundaries, the humour at times is spot on and the new location will take a while to explore if you want to find all of the secrets available. There are new achievements and those who set out in pursuit of a flawless gamerscore will take a lot longer to complete the addon than those who just want to play and have fun. There is a small update from XBL that allows people who do not have Knothole Island to continue playing cooperatively with their friends.
Knothole Island clocks in at around 800msp and is worth the price of admission.
The Jedi Temple for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed offers a new area to explore and gives players a few more hours of play in this Star Wars action game. The Jedi Temple requires a judicious use of the Force to negotiate some fiendish puzzle sections and survive some pretty nasty battles. It has some excellent level design and answers a few questions about the Apprentice's father. It also adds 6 new characters to play as, as well as providing 3 new costumes for the Apprentice himself. It weighs in at 800msp and whilst not as value for money as the other DLC it is certainly better than a couple of jacked up weapons and addon vehicles, right EA?
The battles are challenging especially if you ramp up the difficulty and the boss battles are good, it keeps to the feeling of the Force Unleashed and manages to provide a few hours of fun whilst deepening the story of the game. So, it's worth it.
We turn our eyes to the recently announced DLC now and if you haven't checked our news, then you'll be missing out on the fact that Fallout 3 and Saints Row 2 are heading back to us with even more Downloadable Content goodness, and for the first time, the PS3 will be able to appreciate the DLC too for Fallout 3.
Saints Row 2 is set to receive the Corporate Wars pack, adding more goodness to the game and even more story. We finally get to find out what happened to the missing 3rd Row Saint and more. If it's as good as Ultor Exposed was then we can't wait for it.
Fallout 3 benefits from Mothership Zeta, a mysterious alien spaceship returns to Earth and it seems like the player is going to be abducted. Not much else is known about this DLC at the moment; expect a full report when we get our hands on it. Point Lookout promises a new area of swampland, new quests and NPCs to interact with. After playing Operation Anchorage and seeing how much we liked the addon, we can't wait to get into the Pitt and Broken Steel as well. Good news for Fallout 3 fans is that later on in the year, a GotY edition of Fallout 3 will be out and that will have all 5 addons plus the game, for the same price as the game...good value for money, we think so.
Tune in next time when we take a look at the Pitt, the next Fable 2 DLC and more!