Next Oblivion download available Thursday
by Joystiq Staff 
{ Jul 11th 2006 at 4:35PM }
The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion downloads just keep comin'. The next one will hit this Thursday for PC and Xbox 360 owners -- this time for the low low price of $1.89. What a bargain! Called "The Vile Lair," here's what you get for your dollar and change:
- A multilevel lair for murderous players to find refuge
- The Font of Renewal, where a player may purge himself of Vampirism
- The Shrine of Sithis where the infamous player may heal and be cured of disease
- A Dark Minion, who the player may employ to find gold in a most unseemly manner
- A 'cattle pen' for vampires to dine
- An indoor garden of venomous plants, including the notorious Chokeberry to feed to your enemy
- Various furnishing upgrades, including a study room and storage area
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Antonio @ Jul 11th 2006 4:41PM
For two dollars, this seems like a great download. I was a little ticked off by what Bethesda did for the horse armor but this definatly seems like a lot of content for not too much money. At prices like this I hope Bethesda keeps it coming.
james f. @ Jul 11th 2006 4:56PM
sweet! this gives me just enough incentive to go vampire!
lolersticks @ Jul 11th 2006 5:05PM
What the HOLY HELL is that picture of?
"Zed, get the gimp"
RiskyChris @ Jul 11th 2006 5:22PM
Adblocked that image cause it freaks me out.
Boo on micropayments...
GOD @ Jul 11th 2006 5:26PM
"The Font of Renewal, where a player may purge himself of Vampirism" Finally! I've gone through the cure for Vampirism quest and it takes forever... Especially if you get it at a low level... Like I did. And that image is a little too freaky.
GamerZero @ Jul 11th 2006 5:33PM
@ RiskyChris
Yeah,all this content should be free.
Developers should work for nothing.
I can get free content from torrents so why not XBLIVE.
My whole family are thieves and I believe that the world owes me a favour...
I am not a criminal!
Exo @ Jul 11th 2006 5:38PM
@ gamerzero
Yeah, I should pay for all content.
Developers make unfinished games.
They sell me the unfinished game, and make me pay to finish it.
My family wastes money and we belive it grows on trees.
I am an idiot!
TC @ Jul 11th 2006 5:48PM
#2 The picture is of the Joystiq staffers excited about Oblivion updates.
Will @ Jul 11th 2006 5:52PM
The ironic thing is that if Bethesda would have released zero additional content, people would have been aamzed at how much stuff they fit into the retail game and left it at that. But now that they're offering additional content, at a price, people are saying the original game was unfinished.
You paid your $60 for what was in the original game. If you found value in that, you probably bought it. If you didn't find value in that, you didn't.
If you find value in these additional content packages, buy them. If you don't, then don't. But leave the ridiculous 'the game was unfinished' comments out of it.
GamerZero @ Jul 11th 2006 5:53PM
@ Exo
Oblivion has more gaming hours than four other titles put together so I call that value not unfinished.
When was the consumer forced to pay for extra content?
Your right about that last comment by the way.
puh_fifer @ Jul 11th 2006 5:54PM
The one on the right looks like adam sessler and the one on the left looks like harry from 3rd rock from the sun.
Or two transvestites...
o.g @ Jul 11th 2006 5:55PM
ok this is wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy off topic
but could someone tell me if you can play video games on a projection crt tv
thanx in advance
Carl Winslow @ Jul 11th 2006 5:56PM
Sometimes these micropayments suck when the content is for games that are not finished (i.e. stuff that fixes bugs or adds content that was promised in the main game). But who the hell cares if developers want to add more stuff to their game at a later date for a small fee (like in this case). Buy the game, and if you want more, buy the DLC. Otherwise, ignore it. But no one can tell me that Oblivion "wasn't finished." Give me a break.
AoE @ Jul 11th 2006 5:56PM
RiskyChris, I can understand complaining if they're charging us for bug-patches; but this is new and totally optional game content, not bugfixes.
If you enjoy a game enough to want to play new content it's not unreasonable to compensate the fine folks who, you know, MAKE A LIVING by creating these games and addons for us. You did play/enjoy Oblivion, right? Otherwise why care?
Brandon @ Jul 11th 2006 6:01PM
Uh, is it possible to get vampirism a second time after you've killed that vampire guy in the Dark Brotherhood? And, no I don't have the PC version so I can't just type in the code for vampirism.
RiskyChris @ Jul 11th 2006 6:02PM
That wasn't a bash on Bethesda for Oblivion. I firmly believe this sets the precedent for more greedy companies to intentionally withrdaw content from complete games that should've been in the release.
Or we can all continue to be sheep...
REY2K7 @ Jul 11th 2006 6:02PM
#7 TC,
are you serious? Joystiq staffers are ugly.
steve @ Jul 11th 2006 6:07PM
Don't anyone kid themselves. This game was not 100% finished. More like 98%. The only proof I needed to see was when trying to open the door to the Orrery. The idea was there yet they chose to lock it out to players until they wanted to put out that additional content.
I still consider this game a fantastic value, yet it bothers me that people are being nickel and dimed to death. Due to the lack of value that I see in the downloadable content, I play the game less, not more. Give me more for my money Bethesda!
Jman1236 @ Jul 11th 2006 6:08PM
Woohoo! Now I can be a vampire and change back whenever I want!
Also #12, I don't know but you can become a vampire by going into a dungeon that has NPC that are affectived by the vampire disease and fighting with them, by fighting them, there is a small chance you'll contact the disease and then wait three days without using a potion or shine to heal yourself, like you would for poisons and curses, and then sleep and you'll become a vampire.
Exo @ Jul 11th 2006 6:21PM
Yes Gamerzero, I am an idiot for not buying an unfinsihed game and hving to give more money to bethesda to unlocks stuff like orrery that was already in the game. /sarcasm
hey, hear that sound gamerzero? thats teh soudn of bethesda taking out the deluxe sized dildo just for you. so bend over and receive more of your micro payments
joe smith @ Jul 11th 2006 6:22PM
Anyone here being forced to buy the extra content? Then can we PLEASE stop the fucking whining about "greedy developers" and "unfinished games" already? GET OVER IT!
joe smith @ Jul 11th 2006 6:23PM
Oh yea -- and if that photo is the Joystiq staff, I think it explains a lot...
Jordan Hass @ Jul 11th 2006 7:24PM
That Photo Creeps The Hell Out Of Me
*Slashes With Sword*
Ian @ Jul 11th 2006 8:00PM
"5. @ RiskyChris
Yeah,all this content should be free.
Developers should work for nothing.
I can get free content from torrents so why not XBLIVE.
My whole family are thieves and I believe that the world owes me a favour...
I am not a criminal!"
@Gamerzero
Some people don't like micro payments like. Personally for me, I have mixed feelings. The content should be at a good price and have good content. The GRAW chapter 2 package costs about 1/4 the price of GRAW so shouldn't we get at least 1/4 the content? No we get 8 "relit" maps with a few new guns and new modes. No single player additions or nothing. On top of that, you can only play multiplayer with other people that bought the Chapter 2 package. For Oblivion its up to you, but I wouldn't pay 1/8 the price or w/e it is for only a small add on compared to Oblivion's already massive scale. The content should be equal to what your buyibng. Like in CoD2 you got something like 12 multiplayer maps with a full scale single player game. Is 1/6th the price (10 bucks) worth it for 2 new multiplayer maps? I think there should at least be an addition for single player. And once again you can't play against anyone who didn't buy it. Thats just they way I see it.
mrdowns @ Jul 11th 2006 8:31PM
I bet the developers had a list about 500 items long of everything they'd like to fit in the game. That list was prioritized, then implemented in order of priority. As with any game, there's a cut off point where time and money run out: you have to decide on a stopping point on that list. With most games, we don't know what's below that point, but with Oblivion it seems we do.
Thinking of it from this perspective explains to me why they left in one inaccessible door. If Oblivion wasn't going to have micropayment content, I don't think they'd have put in the Orrery's content behind that door. I think they would've just taken out the door.
GamerZero @ Jul 11th 2006 8:49PM
@ Exo
Just because you can see mountains in the game,it doesn't mean you can climb them all.You can't swim across the ocean to find another city to explore either.You found one door that's only unlocked by paying for it.So now the game is unplayable and broken.Poor you.
Looks like Bethesda shafted you with the double dildo extreme because your the one thats moaning the loudest!
Todd H. @ Jul 11th 2006 9:53PM
I always look forward to new content for great games. I mean they could have just finished the game and been done with it, at least now with a platform like Live, games are having new content added regularly...
Todd
http://www.proxbox360.com
fahmi @ Jul 11th 2006 10:06PM
if you want a finished game like oblivion with all the previous bonus contents added, the game won't be out until now. and then, you gonna bitch why it's still isn't out yet.
even if the game is REALLY REALLY finished, all the promised features are in, they can't sell additional contents because people like exo and chris will bitch yet again because they think the contents should be in the game in the first place. when it's not.
but when a company like ubi charges a fortune for crappy bonus contents in GRAW, that's totally wrong. just because the price doesn't justify the content we are getting. not that they purposely take out all the maps, and decided to sell them in pieces later. the game is already complete. what do you expect? 1000 multiplayer maps?
SonicRift @ Jul 11th 2006 10:57PM
While I didn't purchase the game until after the major bug fixes, and didn't have to experience most of them, I really don't think developers should be releasing incomplete games. Just be thankful noone's made us pay for a patch yet. Alot of people seem think that this is what these packages are.
I was a little pissed when I found the Orrey. That was intentionally locked out on us. I don't really want these little improvements though. I'd really like the big enhancements, like the expansions Morrowind got on the PC. Xbox users couldn't get those until the Game of the Year edition came out, but with Live, there is a platform to sell us that content. There is a means to deliver us a whole new game with new quest lines to tack on to this one. For that, I am excited.
(SPOILER)
And to #5, I am the Grey Fox, I pay for nothing.
justin @ Jul 12th 2006 12:34AM
for fuck's sake. this game isn't INCOMPLETE! i'd say the content i downloaded lasted me about 2 hours out of the total time i played it. guess how long i've played it then? 135 fucking hours (minus the 2 hour content), that's 133 hours and i'm no where near done with any of the original quests. quit bitching! even if it wasn't "finished" the game is about 20 times the size of any of the 7 hour 60 dollar games you play besides oblivion. some people are never satisfied, and you assholes are some of those people.
Thryon @ Jul 12th 2006 6:49AM
I just purchased a Jeep. This Jeep cost me a good penny. It is complete, but I am already looking at add-ons. I will most likely purchase seat covers (to protect from rain and mud), I will add a lift kit and larger tires, I will get a bike rack, and maybe a decal or two. Now all these extras will cost me money. Following the logic of most, I would have to say that I got shafted and purchased an incomplete vehicle, as I now have to pay for extra content that should have been included with the original package? Is Chrysler ripping me off by forcing me to pay nickels and dimes(well a crap load of nickels and dimes) for every extra. No as the Jeep was complete. The extras are not required to serve the main purpose of the vehicle.
The horse armor aside, most packages are fairly price for the extra content they provide. Bethesda must pay employees for the time it requires to create the extra content.
Oblivion cost me just about $92 (Canadian). I played it so far for over 200+ hours. This gives me a ratio of about 46 cents an hour. To me, this was a complete game. I loved this game...from start to finish. Even after I finished it, I am still playing (I completed it at about 85 hours). But I have not paid for a single extra. Maybe someday I will, but the way I look at it, there is still lots to do in the game for another 200+ hours without all the extra content.
Tom @ Jul 12th 2006 10:03AM
First of all, Oblivion had a massive amount of content. I paid $50 and got over 100 hours of gameplay out of it. I am completely satisfied with it. This is why I hate micropayments. I don't think there is any amount of money that is large enough for developers to actually get some profit yet small enough that people won't feel like they are paying too much for too little. As for the "uncomplete game" argument, I don't think it applies to Bethesda. However, I completely agree that developers will be tempted to "leave out" a couple things if they know they can make a little extra money later on. It will always be controversial because players will never know if it was intentional or not.
In addition, the PC version of Oblivion has massive amounts of user created content which is absolutely free! This makes the value of official downloadable content drop even more. On the XBOX official content is pretty much the only additional stuff you can get. It sucks but it's the truth.
Aram @ Jul 12th 2006 10:43AM
are people still commenting on the evilness of additional paying content? just get used to it, use the time to complain to go make extra $2 somewhere and buy the content!
and if you don't want it, don't buy it... if not enough people download contents, they'll stop making them. Trust the market to work its magic. Game companies are in it to make money, not to provide a public service to humanity.
Kumo @ Jul 12th 2006 11:54AM
Freaky Picture came from a google image search for vampire, lazy joystiq staff, the source site of the picture is the bloody mallory website, a site about an old french vampire flick.
deter1ii @ Jul 13th 2006 2:02PM
What if Bethesda only charged like 750 ms points and then you could have any and all downloads for one specific game not pay for this one and this one, but give it like a 500 mb of content for that 750 mspoints. If you want another 500 mb the pay another 750 points. That seems like it would be a little easier for people to swallow, I for one have all of the downloaded content for Oblivion except for horse armor ( throw it in the gutter and go buy another)
e. johns @ Aug 9th 2006 2:27PM
What's all this? hmm well..I think a game would only be "incomplete" if you actually had to purchase seperate content from the game itself to actually BEAT the game, not explore any side quest or new items. seems that the content stays really cheap too, it's not like you're dishing out 60 extra dollars to play something that's half of the orginaly game. you pay $1.85 for some new areas new baddies and new gear. atleast they aren't charging you for a single item. Though i can see how frustrating playing a game and discovering something that is only unlocked when you pay for it, the games shipped should have all content unlocked, the content you pay for should be additional to the game, not already there to begin with and just "locked". the door or city should appear after you've bought it and not appear in the game prior to it's purchase. though it does wet your interest, no? Oh yea...and READ ONE PIECE!