In a recent 1UP podcast, Epic Games’ Tim Sweeney and Mark Rein discussed Gears of War and downloadable content. One topic was about how Epic completed four new multiplayer maps and were ready to release them to the public for free, but Microsoft has been delaying the release and wanted to charge players. This revelation, of course, caused some major outcry from the community. In a letter to the public, Rein addressed this issue and said that a compromise had been reached — the map pack will be initially released with a price tag but will then be released for free a few months down the line.
Rein doesn’t point fingers at anyone, specifically stating, "What we have here is simply a difference of opinion on how to maximize the return on Gears of War – something both Epic and Microsoft want to do. While we create products like Gears because we love games, and we have a passion for making them, at the end of the day this is a business for both companies and how we earn our living." Rein goes on to compare this download model to the original Halo 2 map pack and mentioned its success. "It was a huge success. Lots of people bought the maps and lots of people downloaded them when they became free. That’s what is going to happen and it seems like a fair compromise for both companies and a win-win for Gears players."
Rein finishes up stating the upcoming downloadable content that’ll contain the new multiplayer mode Annex, among other updates, will be released this week for free.
