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Pardon the dust! This page includes some jargon that hasn't been added to the site's glossary yet. I'll be around to fix this later, but sorry for the inconvenience in the meantime. |
Review: DLC Quest
At a Glance
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How to Save and Pause:Your progress is saved when you quit the game. The first story remembers exactly where you left off, but the second story uses a checkpoint system. You'll start by the last checkpoint you triggered. Time needed per session:Since you'll make progress by exploring the world, plan to play for at least fifteen minutes at a time. That said, the entire game can be completed in under two hours.
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Does this game pose issues for Christian players?
 | No - this is a great game for Christians There is a very small amount of violence. So little in fact, that warning readers about it seems silly. |
Screenshots
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/dlc_quest_0.jpg)
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/dlc_quest_1.jpg)
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/dlc_quest_2.jpg)
Game Overview
Everyone needs to be able to laugh at themselves, and DLC Quest is here to let us laugh at many of the recent (and not so recent) developments in the video game industry. In particular, it's a jab at the way some AAA games have failed to live up to expectations or have otherwise become mired in bad ideas and poor practices.
More specifically, DLC Quest presents itself as a game made by a corporate entity. Since the management is both incredibly inept and greedy, the resulting product is a barely working "game" that features more paywalls than some major highways. In order to make any progress, the player is forced to purchase yet more DLC from the in-game store. The DLC also gets increasingly ridiculous, as if the management has no idea what their game is about, let alone what the players would enjoy.
Things just get crazier during the second adventure, Live Freemium or Die, where the corporate greed has led to many, many more problems and insane business decisions, all of which avid gamers will have seen far too many times to count.
With all of that said, DLC Quest is basically a typical platformer where you run around and gather coins hidden throughout the world, and it's a fairly good one. The main unique feature is the focus on making jokes, so if you're a fan of platformers and like a little humor, you'll probably enjoy spending an hour or so with this one.
There's a big drawback to this game though: if you don't play a lot of modern games (on your computer or mobile device) then many of the jokes may get lost in translation. DLC Quest is clearly made for people that either follow or consider themselves part of the gaming community, so this means that nearly every joke is an in-joke that not everyone will get.
Important: there is no actual DLC in this game. Everything is purchased using gold coins you've found around the level.
More specifically, DLC Quest presents itself as a game made by a corporate entity. Since the management is both incredibly inept and greedy, the resulting product is a barely working "game" that features more paywalls than some major highways. In order to make any progress, the player is forced to purchase yet more DLC from the in-game store. The DLC also gets increasingly ridiculous, as if the management has no idea what their game is about, let alone what the players would enjoy.
Things just get crazier during the second adventure, Live Freemium or Die, where the corporate greed has led to many, many more problems and insane business decisions, all of which avid gamers will have seen far too many times to count.
With all of that said, DLC Quest is basically a typical platformer where you run around and gather coins hidden throughout the world, and it's a fairly good one. The main unique feature is the focus on making jokes, so if you're a fan of platformers and like a little humor, you'll probably enjoy spending an hour or so with this one.
There's a big drawback to this game though: if you don't play a lot of modern games (on your computer or mobile device) then many of the jokes may get lost in translation. DLC Quest is clearly made for people that either follow or consider themselves part of the gaming community, so this means that nearly every joke is an in-joke that not everyone will get.
Important: there is no actual DLC in this game. Everything is purchased using gold coins you've found around the level.
Points of Interest
Pokes fun at the industry's less intelligent moves
Game developers usually want to make money with their products. This is fine, but the way they've been going about it lately deserves a little criticism. DLC Quest covers just about every gripe players have with today's games, right down to having to pay for patches to fix problems that should've been resolved before the game was released.
Very short, but still fun
It doesn't take long to beat this game, and this is actually a good thing as it prevents the jokes from getting too overused or stale. In the meantime, there's a surprisingly large amount of things to do and areas to explore. Just expect to shell out for more DLC to see it.
No actual DLC
Despite the sheer amount of things you can get from the in-game store, you won't be paying for any of it with real money. This game makes fun of the problem; it's not going to be part of the problem too.
Almost too good a parody
You'll need to backtrack a LOT. Nearly every time you take one step forward, there's going to be something that will stop your progress until you buy some arbitrary DLC to continue. Most of these DLC packs are only available after you discover you'll need them, so you can't just buy them all at once and get it over with.
Too many in-jokes
If you're a casual gamer, don't play the big AAA games when they come out, or just don't follow gaming news much, many, if not most, of the jokes are going to fall flat. There are also a bunch of (deliberately) dated references that aren't terribly funny anymore.
Concerns and Issues
Tiny amount of blood
When something gets hurt (such as getting pricked by a spike, slashed by your sword), there's a small puff of red. This is presumably a blood splatter, but it's so briefly seen that you'd almost need to be looking for it.
Later on, there are zombies (because every game these days needs zombies). Naturally, they appear to have some blood on them.
Later on, there are zombies (because every game these days needs zombies). Naturally, they appear to have some blood on them.
Mild violence
When anything other than the player is killed, the character is replaced by a gravestone as a "squish" sound effect is played. It's about as primitive as "violent" graphics can get.
Sexy Clothing DLC
One of the optional DLC packages has characters wear sexy revealing outfits. Apparently this is made available because, just like zombies, every game needs an option to have the NPCs show some skin. Of course, the joke is taken a step farther than expected, taking any fanservice right out of the picture.
Laughing with or laughing at?
Sometimes it's hard to tell if the game is making fun of the gaming industry or the people playing modern games. The best example is the description of one of the DLC packages, which bluntly states that at this point, you'll buy anything.