8 Bit Weapon, the long-running chiptune and electronic band formed by Seth and Michelle “ComputeHer” Sternberger, have a new album and it’s got quite the meta concept: what if the music industry followed modern game design? “How much of a song would you hear before you purchased the rest of it as DLC,” the new album asks.
The idea is to start with track 4, “DLC the OST (Standard Edition)” which features only the backing and melody. It’s nice, but wouldn’t it sound even better with drums? For a small charge the Drums DLC adds layers of percussive depth and really gets your toe tapping. Later in the product cycle, take your song to the next level with the Expansion DLC that lays on the style by adding new synths, percussion, and samples.
Gross right? Ultimately, they couldn’t bring themselves to nickel-and-dime their fans to put the concept to test so the album contains all the “DLC” and the full song, hilariously titled “DLC the OST (Season Pass Edition)”. Taking the next natural step, the album is considered the “GOTY bundle” edition and includes two wholly original bonus songs.
The answer to the question that DLC the OST poses is obvious: No. No one would pay for half of a song and then buy individual instruments as if it were a satisfying reward. Ok, maybe some of you interested in remixes or how the song was created would, but not the general music listening public. The real question turns the focus back onto games but that’s a discussion for a different kind of site, or maybe the comments section. I’m happy to say that despite the concept, DLC the OST still gives us three enjoyable (and totally complete) tracks for as little as $3.
Check it out and let’s discuss in the comments. What do you think of the song, 8 Bit Weapon’s concept, or our modern games with DLC and microtransactions?
