In defense of unlockables in games

How giving players less can really mean giving them more and how flexible developer decisions can benefit everyone.

This essay is in response to Stephen Totilo's article "The 480th Argument Against Locking Content in Video Games." It looks at why locking content from players is actually important and encourages developers to experiment with it.

[Snookies12]

I enjoy it, especially in fighting games. I hate games that just give you everything right off the bat. It's really fun when you have a bunch of stages, characters, etc. to unlock. It makes you want to play it that much more to earn them.

[Son_Lee]

Unlocking should be the way of all games. However, when DLC replaces what should have been unlockable from the start, then we have a MAJOR problem.

[NukaCola]

I love unlockables.

I hate disc locked DLC.

[DragonKnight]

The only response to a Kotaku article that should ever be made, if not on this site, is *facepalm.*

If on this site the only response to a Kotaku article that should ever be made is..

Story Quality: WTF?
Like this website?: No.

[Ben_Giff]

It's not just a response to the Kotaku article. The opinion piece stands on its own too.

[DragonKnight]

No I know, I didn't mean to imply that the piece itself was without merit. I'm simply stating that no one should take anything Kotaku writes about seriously. Kotaku are quite simply not worth it.